Earthquakes in Rochester NY: Past quakes that have rattled upstate New York

Earthquakes, nearly all of them minor, are not uncommon in New York state. Here are some previous quakes that rattled the Rochester region, even if only with a nudge and a wink.

April 23, 2023

A 3.6 magnitude earthquake was reported in Watertown and other locations east of Lake Ontario in the afternoon. The earthquake was centered in southern Jefferson County at a depth of 8.9 kilometers beneath the surface.

Feb. 6, 2023

A 3.8 magnitude earthquake centered in the Buffalo suburb of West Seneca early in the morning shook buildings in a 30-mile radius, including the home of Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz, according to an X post.

Aug. 17, 2022

A 1.2 magnitude earthquake struck overnight a few miles outside of Le Roy, Livingston County, located 3 miles beneath the Earth’s surface.

March 16, 2022

A minor 2.6 magnitude tremblor shook an area southwest of Warsaw, Wyoming County, and occurred 3 miles below the surface.

May 27, 2021

A 2.4-magnitude earthquake struck the hamlet of Tuscarora in southwestern Genesee County. Residents in the area said it felt "like a big truck came through."

March 29, 2020

Residents across western and central New York reported feeling a 2.6-magnitude earthquake under Lake Ontario, about 40 miles northwest of Rochester's Charlotte Pier. The nearest land was in the town of Lyndonville, Orleans County, about eight miles south of the epicenter. The quake was three miles below the surface.

Jan. 22, 2020

A magnitude 1.9 temblor was reported near Ransomville, Niagara County. The community is about 15 miles northeast of Niagara Falls.

Dec. 18, 2019

A magnitude 2.1 earthquake struck under Lake Ontario about 12 miles northeast of Sodus, Wayne County.

Feb. 14, 2019

The U.S. Geological Survey reported a 2.0-magnitude temblor under the lake about 14 miles northwest of the village of Brockport.

March 21, 2018

Numerous New Yorkers reported feeling the effects of a magnitude 2.7 earthquake in the early-morning hours. The epicenter was midway between Potsdam, St. Lawrence County and Malone, Franklin County. No damage was reported. The vast majority of those who reported feeling the quake were in the North Country, but there also were reports from Batavia, Geneseo, Syracuse and Binghamton.

July 11, 2017

A magnitude 2.5 quake under Lake Ontario off the town of Somerset in Niagara County was felt by handful of people. The quake, which occurred shortly before 10:30 a.m., occurred about 3 miles below the surface. The epicenter was about 50 miles west-northwest of Rochester.

Feb. 13, 2014

At least a few people in Rochester reported feeling a magnitude 2.5 quake centered on a spot due north of Lyndonville, Orleans County on the U.S.-Canada border in the middle of Lake Ontario.

May 17, 2013

A sizable magnitude 5.1 temblor centered 45 miles northwest of Ottawa, Canada caused a rumble in Rochester. "“I was shaking and I looked at my desk and it was shaking,” said Mike Giambrone, who was working in an office at Woodcliff in Perinton at the time. "It was weird."

More: Another small earthquake hits WNY

March 23, 2012

People in Pittsford and other locations just south of Rochester reported noticing a magnitude 2.0 quake that was centered between Geneseo and Mount Morris in Livingston County.

Aug. 23, 2011

A magnitude 5.8 quake centered near Louisa, Virginia, was felt here. That one shook buildings and rattled nerves across much of the eastern United States and southern Canada.

June 23, 2010

A magnitude 5.0 earthquake that was centered not far from Friday’s Port Colborne earthquake was felt in Rochester. It inspired lots of social media playfulness — including an “I Survived the June 23, 2010 Earthquake” Facebook page — but, thankfully, no damage of significance.

June 5, 2009

A magnitude 2.9 quake centered three miles south-southeast of Attica, about 30 miles east of Buffalo. The area is on a fault line and has had numerous quakes over the years, including a damaging one in 1929 that measured 5.6 on the Richter scale.

Aug. 29, 2007

A 3.2 magnitude temblor centered eight miles northeast of Tupper Lake in the central Adirondacks is reported. More people report hearing the rumble than feeling it. The incident was one of several in the Northeast around that time.

Oct. 31, 2005

Two earthquakes over the course of three hours rattle Wayne County. The Halloween night quakes hit first in the town of Ontario (magnitude 2.6) and later under Lake Ontario, 15 miles northwest of Sodus (magnitude 1.5).

Sept. 25, 1998

Rochester is shaken by a 5.2 magnitude quake centered 200 miles away, about 15 miles north of Sharon, Pennsylvania.

June 9, 1994

A 7.8 magnitude earthquake centered about 200 miles northeast of LaPaz, Bolivia, was felt as far away as Toronto. There was at least one report of vibrations in the Rochester area.

June 1991

Irondequoit and Greece residents felt the effects of a magnitude 3.9 earthquake centered in Schoharie County, about 40 miles west of Albany.

Oct. 1990

An earthquake measuring 4.7 on the Richter Scale was felt from Buffalo to northern Vermont. It was centered about 120 miles northwest of Montreal in Quebec.

Nov. 1988

An earthquake 95 miles north of Quebec City registers a magnitude 6 and could be felt from Michigan to Washington, D.C., and in Rochester.

Oct. 1983

A 5.2 magnitude quake in the Adirondack Mountains is felt in Rochester. It was the third-largest earthquake ever recorded in the state at the time.

Jan. 1, 1966

A 4.7 magnitude quake damaged the smokestack at Attica Correctional Facility in Wyoming County.

Sept. 5, 1944

New York's largest earthquake with an epicenter near Massena, St. Lawrence County, measured 5.8 and was felt from Canada to Maryland and Indiana to Maine. It did $2 million in damage in Massena and Cornwall, Canada. The quake shook homes in the Rochester area and touched off a flood of phone calls to authorities, but it caused no significant damage here.

Other New York quakes

Aug. 10, 1884: New York City, magnitude 5.5.

Oct. 7, 1983: Blue Mountain Lake, magnitude 5.3.

April 20, 2002: Au Sable Forks, magnitude 5.1.

May 24, 2002: Plattsburgh aftershock, magnitude 3.6.

Dec. 25, 2002: Redford, magnitude 3.3.

SOURCE: U.S. Geological Society and Democrat and Chronicle files

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Earthquakes in Rochester NY: Past quakes that have rattled upstate NY