New Madrid Waking Up? Missouri Tremor Followed by Stronger Quake

Could it be that the New Madrid Fault is waking up from a brief slumber? There was a small tremor in Missouri Friday followed by a much stronger jolt to the south in Arkansas that was felt by many.

The first New Madrid quake struck just to the southwest of Howardville, Missouri around 3:32 am Friday. It was no big deal with only a magnitude of 2.2 on the Richter Scale. Virtually no one felt it since it was relatively small and happened in the middle of the night.

The second New Madrid quake was felt by dozens, though. It was a magnitude 2.9 quake that struck east of Pangburn, Arkansas around 6:15am.

If the second quake had happened in 2024, it would have been one of the top 7 strongest quakes of the year. Still, a 2.9 isn't going to do any damage even if it happens near a big city. It's just a curious active morning in southern Missouri and northern Arkansas.

You might recall around 3 weeks ago that the New Madrid Fault had a swarm of 7 quakes. That made many wonder if the area was about to have a more significant event, but then the area quieted down again.

As my friends at the USGS will tell you, you can't predict earthquakes and you can't tell if a swarm is a foreshock of a bigger quake to come until after the big quake happens. It's the limitation of our science at this point until technology and research figures out how to give us a heads up that the ground beneath us is about to shake.