Most people do not know that the Mississippi River is one giant fault line called the New Madrid fault line. If a serious earthquake was to happen, it would be felt as far away as Atlanta. It has the potential to be as bad as a major California Earthquake, potentially cleaving the Mississippi in half and causing havoc all throughout the south and Midwest, not to mention destroying major cities such as New Orleans, Memphis, St. Louis, and Chicago.
There has been concern about this recently as west Tennessee and the areas of Arkansas and Missouri that border the Mississippi River area have experienced a small swarm of at least twenty-nine earthquakes.
A 2.7-magnitude earthquake on Tuesday morning was the latest to rattle part of Tennessee, geologists say.
The tremor hit about 5 miles northwest of of Dyersburg at 12:35 a.m., according to the U.S. Geological Survey. People near the city of roughly 16,000 told geologists they felt the quake, which was more than 7 miles deep.
Some people in Dyer County, about 75 miles northeast of Memphis, reported feeling “weak” shaking, with no damage, according to the USGS.
To the north and about one hour later, a 1.3-magnitude earthquake hit outside the town of Ridgely, geologists say.
The quakes were the most recent in a swarm to hit Tennessee in the past month, records show.
Eleven tremors have shaken the northwestern part of the state since Jan. 7, according to the USGS. The largest of those were 2.5-magnitude earthquakes, also hitting near Dyersburg and Ridgely last month, officials say.
Quakes have also been reported nearby in Arkansas and Missouri, bringing the regional total to 29, records show. (source)