At 4:35 a.m., an earthquake rumbled through Champaign-Urbana. WCIA Newsroom corroborated that over fifteen people in their viewing area had already called in to claim the movement. After a few minutes, the U.S. Geological Survey posted the information to their website, listing the earthquake’s magnitude as a 5.2 and it’s center was near West Salem, Ill.
It is assumed that the tremor was caused by the New Madrid Seismic Zone that runs between St. Louis, Mo., and Memphis, Tenn. In 1811, the fault moved for almost three months during the wintertime. The quake was felt as far away as North Carolina.
UPDATE: Aftershocks were felt in Urbana, Ill., at 10:15 a.m. A seismographic reading could not yet be identified. The U.S. Geological Survey has identified this one as a 2.5 on the Richter Scale.