Scientists want to know: Did anyone feel an earthquake that hit south of St. George?

Stock image | Photo by Petrovich9/iStock/Getty Images Plus, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — An earthquake struck in an area less than 10 miles south of St. George Saturday evening, and the U.S. Geological Survey is asking anyone in the region who may have felt it to share their experience in an online survey.

Map shows the epicenter of a 2.8 magnitude earthquake that hit south of St. George Saturday, Dec. 22, 2018 | Image courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey, St. George News | Click on image to enlarge

The University of Utah Seismograph Stations reported the quake at 5:09 p.m. on the Arizona Strip about 7 miles southeast of the Bloomington Hills area of St. George.

The epicenter of the quake occurred in an uninhabited area near a system of dirt roads south of the Utah-Arizona border. It measured 2.8 magnitude on the Richter scale, according to the USGS.

As of about 7:30 p.m. Saturday, an online survey issued by the USGS reports two responders feeling very weak shakes, with no potential for any real damage.

However, in order to get a more complete picture of the quake’s impact, the USGS is asking anyone interested in contributing to “citizen science” who was in the vicinity of the quake to share their experience on the survey website, regardless of whether they felt any shaking.

“This is a two-way street: not only will you add valuable information on the extent of ground shaking and damage, but in the process we hope you will learn more about how other communities fared and gain a greater understanding of the effects of earthquakes,” the USGS survey website reads.

Saturday’s quake was one of many small-to-tiny seismic events that regularly occur in and around Southern Utah. The USGS has reported dozens of smaller earthquakes in the region within the last week.

While more severe earthquakes are relatively rare, USGS recommends the following in the event a high magnitude earthquake:

  • If you are indoors, stay there. Get under a desk or table and hang on to it (drop, cover and hold on) or move into a hallway or against an inside wall. Stay clear of windows, fireplaces and heavy furniture or appliances. Get out of the kitchen, which is a dangerous place (things can fall on you). Don’t run downstairs or rush outside while the building is shaking or while there is danger of falling and hurting yourself or being hit by falling glass or debris.
  • If you are outside get into the open, away from buildings, power lines, chimneys and anything else that might fall on you.
  • If you are driving, stop carefully. Move your car as far out of traffic as possible. Do not stop on or under a bridge or overpass or under trees, light posts, power lines or signs. Stay inside your car until the shaking stops. When you resume driving, watch for breaks in the pavement, fallen rocks and bumps in the road at bridge approaches.
  • If you are in a mountainous area, watch out for falling rock, landslides, trees and other debris that could be loosened by quakes.

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