In the last 24 hours, 2 rare quakes rattled the central and eastern parts of the USA. The strongest earthquake in Alabama this years – actually a minor M2.7 – hit near Scottsboro on December 20, 2017.Wednesday night. About 4 hours later, Upper Valley folks felt the ground shake when a M2.3 earthquake hit near White River Junction, Vermont. Small earthquakes are rare, but not unheard of, in the northeast. Last month, a M4.1 earthquake struck near Dover, Delaware. The Alabama quake was first measured at M2.9 and then downgraded to M2.7. The M2.7 – or M2.9 – is the 20th quake and the

strongest recorded in Alabama this year – placed equal with 3 other M2.7 tremors. The tremor was detected at 5:55 p.m. Wednesday and hit just under 4 miles below the earth’s surface 4.9 miles west of Scottsboro and about 27 miles east of Huntsville. A M1.8 earthquake was detected in extreme northeast Alabama on Tuesday night, the latest in a series of minor quakes in the state. The second rare earthquake struck near White River Junction, Vermont, near the New Hampshire border around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday at a depth of less than 4 miles. READ MORE