Magnitude 4.8 Earthquake Hits New York City; Shaking Felt In Philadelphia And Boston

Greg Evans
·4 min read
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An earthquake with a magnitude of 4.8 shook New York City on Friday morning around 10:23 a.m. ET, with the tremor, lasting more than five or six seconds and in some areas up to 15 seconds, rattling windows, furniture and apartment floors.

The quake was centered near Lebanon, NJ, 40 miles west of New York City.

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Shaking was felt from Washington, D.C., to Philadelphia and Boston. The quake was initially reported as 4.8, then 4.7, and then upped again to 4.8.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul tweeted, “My team is assessing impacts and any damage that may have occurred, and we will update the public throughout the day.” At a press conference just before 11:45 a.m., Hochul said all Amtrak and subway operations were on full schedules.

Departing flights at Newark airport remained paused just before noon, but a pause at JFK has been lifted. Hochul said La Guardia Airport, which has undergone extensive renovations in recent years, did not issue ground stops.

Hochul also said that the White House has offered any needed assistance. She said no major infrastructure or building damage has been reported, but that infrastructure reviews will continue throughout the area.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ office said the mayor is being briefed, and advised, “In case of an aftershock, drop to the floor, cover your head and neck, and take additional cover under a solid piece of furniture, next to an interior wall, or in a doorway.”

The NYPD says it has not received any reports of injuries or damage. No reports of damage to the city’s transit system have been received.

The X account of the Empire State Building quickly tweeted, “I am fine” at 10:24 a.m. ET, then posting another message at 10:46 a.m. noting, “We are business as usual at the Empire State Building.”

The FAA says the quake “may impact some air traffic facilities in New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia and Baltimore. Air traffic operations are resuming as quickly as possible.” Departures are grounded at both JFK and Newark airports as well as at Baltimore’s Thurgood Marshall Airport.

President Joe Biden was scheduled to be in Baltimore later today to survey damage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge after is collapse last week.

In New Jersey, New Jersey Transit said rail service was subjected to 20-minute delays in both directions due to bridge inspections.

Many New Yorkers, unaccustomed to quakes, described thinking that large trucks were passing by or perhaps subway trains were unusually raucous. New York’s last notable earthquake came on August 23, 2011, with a 5.8 quake centered in Mineral, VA.

Local TV channels this morning interrupted regular programs – including ABC’s The View and on CBS The Price Is Right — for live coverage from news teams. The season-opener game at Yankee Stadium between the Yankees and the Blue Jays set for 1:05 p.m. ET remained on schedule.

The New York Times reported that performers at Lincoln Center felt the earthquake but officials there were not immediately aware of any damage. The New York Philharmonic briefly delayed the start of an 11 a.m. performance because alerts were still going off on people’s cellphones.

All Broadway shows are expected to go on today as planned, according to The Broadway League.

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