The Wilmington area is no stranger to natural disasters.
From floods to fires to tornadoes to hurricanes, residents in this area see a little bit of everything. Well, almost. One thing residents don’t experience — thankfully — is earthquakes. But that doesn’t mean we should rule them out.
Does Wilmington have earthquakes?
According to Dr. Thomas Pratt, a research geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey based in Reston, Virginia, earthquakes aren’t common in the Wilmington area, and there are no records of damaging quakes in New Hanover, Brunswick or Pender counties. But that doesn’t mean the area won’t experience one. Earthquakes occur everywhere in the eastern United States.
“They pop up all over the place,” Pratt said. “So, there’s no reason you couldn’t have one in Wilmington.”
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What causes earthquakes?
According to the U.S. Geological Survey’s website, the Earth is made up of “massive, irregularly shaped slabs of rock” composed of the Earth’s crust. The plates are constantly moving but occasionally get stuck, creating stress between the plates. Pratt explained earthquakes are caused by this stress that builds up, and he compared the phenomenon to a rubber band.