Why You May Not Have Felt the Earthquake

Are you wondering why you didn't feel the Oct. 16 earthquake? The earthquake was felt by some people in Rhode Island but not by others, even in the same town.

Earthquake shaking tends to be amplified in areas where there are soft soil conditions, according John Ebel, the director of the Weston Observatory, which studies and monitors earthquakes. If you live near a landfill, you will likely feel shaking more strongly than if you live on rock formations, Ebel said.

Also, some buildings have a stronger tendency to shake more than others, Ebel said. For example, some residents near the Virginia earthquake in 2011 felt the tremors, while others did not, he said.

Ebel spoke to Patch in the wake of the earthquake, after Twitter and Facebook lit up with users who reported feeling the tremors, while others did not. Some in Tiverton and Little Compton reported feeling the earthquake, while others in town didn't. 

We asked our fans on the Tiverton-Little Compton Patch Facebook page if they felt the quake and were met with mixed reactions:

Robin Marshal: Ok did anyone besides me just feel the earth quake??

Joshh Mello: Not one shake or rattle here in the north end of town but a friend of mine in Freetown felt it.

Camden J Carpenter: Was in Fall River and my steering shook a bit.

Mary Michaud: Felt it in Tiverton, the house was shaking.

Derek Stow: Definitely felt it in Tiverton. The whole house shook.

According to Ebel, human sensitivity to tremors is another factor that determines whether they will feel earthquake termors. Humans have a natural sensitivity to feeling vibrations, but some are more sensitive than others, he said.

Ebel said the earthquake's final magnitude was 4.0, and the quake originated near Hollis, Maine. Ebel called it a "mild to moderate" tremor for New England. Earthquakes greater than a 4.0 magnitude occur every five to eight years, he said. The last earthquake above 4.0 in New England was in Bar Harbor, Maine, in 2006, he said.

Did certain areas in Tiverton and Little Compton feel more tremors than others? Tell us where you were when the earthquake hit in the comments below.