Missouri Shaken: Are August Quakes a Warning of Bigger Threats?

I follow earthquakes in Missouri so closely, there are rarely any tremors that I don't notice. I can say that after looking back at the total number of New Madrid quakes in August, it's not the quantity that concerns me. It's the unusual locations in some cases and some of the larger quakes of the year so far that happened in August that are reason to be watchful.

The USGS keeps very detailed records of all the earthquakes that occur. I decided to query their database to find all of the New Madrid Seismic Zone quakes that happened during August and this was the result. Notice the many earthquakes that happened outside of the typical Missouri boot heel region.

The largest New Madrid quake in August happened on the first day of the month just south of the Missouri boot heel and registered a 3.1 magnitude confirmed by a seismologist. That is not even close to being large enough to do any damage, but it was also followed by a half dozen in the mid-2 magnitude area. Again, still not reason for alarm as the 18 August New Madrid quakes were a little below normal compared to other months. By far, the strangest August New Madrid quake happened just a few days ago on August 26 to the west of the Cape Girardeau area in the Mark Twain National Forest.

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Overall, August was an interesting month for Missouri seismic activity. It was another reminder that we need to be earthquake aware as this fault is capable of producing a life-changing quake any time without warning.