By Andrea Arnold
Residents of McBride felt their world shift on Tuesday April 23, at 4:21 p.m. Earthquakes Canada initially reported an earthquake registering a magnitude of 4.9, placing the quake midrange on the magnitude scale out of 10.
The epicenter was reported to be located approximately 40 km north of the community. A few hours later the magnitude was being reported slightly weaker at 4.2, and the distance from McBride had also changed slightly.
Very quickly following the tremor, the McBride discussion board on Facebook was abuzz. First with people asking if they were the only one who felt it. Then people began sharing their experiences. Locals from Crescent Spur to Dunster all reported feeling the effects of the quake.
Several individuals said that they felt their house shake, or heard dishes rattling in the cupboards. One person said that her shampoo bottle fell into the tub.
It was described as one big wave followed by a couple smaller waves. People also reported feeling a gush of air as though a door was just opened changing the air pressure or heard a noise that sounded like wind.
At the AG Foods grocery store, employee Pat Elliott said that she hadn’t noticed any movement, but thought she must really need to see the eye doctor when she looked at the computer screen and it was bouncing around and she couldn’t read it. Later, when someone asked if she felt the earthquake, she realised what had happened and was relieved that it wasn’t her eyesight.
For those outside walking or driving, the rippling land was not noticeable.
Due to the remote location of the epicenter, Earthquakes Canada says they do not anticipate any reports of damage.
