6830D8Bc D581 44E3 9E05 8B5746B8B332 Scaled E1724683069843 Alabama, Northeast — “Section-Main-Street-al” by Brian Stansberry is licensed under CC BY 4.0

The U.S. Geographical Survey (USGS) confirmed a rarity over the weekend—an earthquake hitting Alabama.

The quake struck near Section, Alabama before sunrise on Friday morning. Here’s what we know.

2.3 magnitude earthquake in Alabama

Screenshot 2024 08 26 At 10.45.55 Am Alabama, Northeast — A screenshot of the USGS map showing where the earthquake hit. (USGS)

The quake struck central Section around 5:30 on Friday morning. It was a smaller earthquake, just a 2.3 magnitude, and because it only went about two miles deep, folks likely didn’t feel it past Scottsboro.

About six hours before the Alabama quake, another, deeper one hit the Northwestern corner of Georgia, about 60 miles west of Section. That quake was a smaller magnitude, 2.1.

Dive into the USGS report here.

Earthquakes in Alabama

A474C0F0 6870 4507 A617 E720B45Dffa9 Alabama, Northeast — “Little River Canyon, Fort Payne, Alabama.” by Evangelio Gonzalez MD is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

According to the Alabama Geographical Survey, earthquakes aren’t exactly unheard of in the Yellowhammer State. Earthquakes are relatively common on the western side of the state, and pretty much anything north of Birmingham.

The largest recorded earthquake in Alabama struck Northern Shelby County in 1916. Geologists estimate that earthquake was a 5.1 magnitude. You might remember a 4.9 magnitude earthquake that hit Fort Payne in 2003.

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