Earthquake rumbles through another part of South Carolina

Another earthquake hit South Carolina Thursday, but it was far from where there has been a recent flurry of seismic activity.

A 2.1 magnitude earthquake was confirmed in the Upstate, according to the South Carolina Emergency Management Division. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake caused tremors at 2 a.m., near Homeland Park, which is about 20 miles from Clemson.

Homeland Park is also about 140 miles from Elgin, which is where a swarm of earthquakes and aftershocks have been recently reported. In the past 54 days, there have been at least 38 earthquakes in Kershaw County, according to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources.

This was the first seismic activity in South Carolina since a 1.5 magnitude earthquake was confirmed in Elgin on Aug. 15.

Anyone who felt Thursday’s earthquake can report it to the USGS.

The most recent earthquake means at least 68 have been detected in the Palmetto State since the start of 2022, according to South Carolina DNR. All but six of the quakes have been in the Midlands.

No major damage or injuries have been reported from any of the recent quakes.

Earthquakes that register 2.5 magnitude or less often go unnoticed and are usually only recorded by a seismograph, according to Michigan Technological University. Any quake less than 5.5 magnitude is not likely to cause significant damage, the school said.

It is typical for South Carolina to have between six and 10 earthquakes a year, the S.C. Geological Survey previously reported. There have been 95 earthquakes in South Carolina since Jan. 18, 2021, according to DNR.

During a recent town hall to address the earthquakes, state geologist Scott Howard said as many as 200 smaller tremors might have gone unnoticed and unrecorded.

The strongest earthquake ever recorded in South Carolina — and on the East Coast of the U.S. — was a devastating 7.3 in Charleston in 1886.

That quake killed 60 people and was felt over 2.5 million square miles, from Cuba to New York and Bermuda to the Mississippi River, according to the Emergency Management Division.

Reported earthquakes in SC in 2021-22

Date/Location

Magnitude

Depth (km)

Jan. 18/Dalzell

2.1

6.9

Feb. 13/Summerville

2.1

5.1

May 12/Heath Springs

1.8

9.99

May 31/Summit

2.6

1.7

May 31/Summit

2.0

5.1

July 16/Ladson

2.0

4.0

July 22/Ladson

1.3

3.5

July 22/Ladson

1.95

3.97

Aug. 21/Centerville

1.75

1.97

Aug. 21/Centerville

1.71

3.37

Sept. 27/Summerville

2.8

6.0

Sept. 27/Summerville

2.0

5.8

Sept. 27/Centerville

3.3

6.8

Oct. 25/Jenkinsville

2.2

3.8

Oct. 26/Jenkinsville

1.8

0.0

Oct. 28/Jenkinsville

1.8

1.8

Oct. 28/Jenkinsville

1.7

0.0

Oct. 28/Jenkinsville

2.1

4.2

Oct. 31/Jenkinsville

2.3

0.1

Nov. 1/Jenkinsville

2.0

5.1

Nov. 9/Centerville

1.5

3.8

Nov. 16/Arial

2.2

5.4

Dec. 20/Ladson

1.1

2.8

Dec. 27/Lugoff

3.3

3.2

Dec. 27/Lugoff

2.5

2.4

Dec. 27/Elgin

2.1

0.7

Dec. 27/Lugoff

1.7

4.9

Dec. 29/Elgin

2.3

1.6

Dec. 30/Elgin

2.5

2.5

Dec. 30/Elgin

2.4

3.8

Jan. 3/Lugoff

2.5

2.7

Jan. 5/Lugoff

2.6

0.5

Jan. 5/Lugoff

1.5

7.0

Jan. 9/Ladson

1.4

2.9

Jan. 11/Elgin

1.7

5.4

Jan. 11/Lugoff

2.0

3.2

Jan. 11/Elgin

1.3

5.0

Jan. 15/Elgin

1.8

3.5

Jan. 19/Elgin

1.9

5.0

Jan. 21/Elgin

1.9

4.8

Jan. 27/Lugoff

2.1

1.0

Feb. 2/Elgin

1.5

3.9

March 4/Elgin

1.8

2.8

March 9/Elgin

2.2

3.6

March 11/Camden

2.1

1.2

March 27/Lugoff

2.1

1.9

March 28/Centerville

0.9

2.9

April 7/Elgin

2.0

2.9

April 8/Centerville

1.6

3.6

April 22/Ladson

1.1

3.5

April 22/Taylors

2.2

2.3

May 9/Elgin

3.3

3.1

May 9/Elgin

1.6

2.9

May 9/Elgin

1.78

4.1

May 9/Elgin

2.1

3.7

May 9/Elgin

2.9

5.6

May 10/Elgin

2.3

3.9

May 10/Elgin

2.8

6.2

May 19/Elgin

1.8

2.5

May 21/Elgin

1.9

5.6

June 26/Elgin

1.88

4.09

June 29/Elgin

3.5

2.64

June 29/Elgin

1.88

2.92

June 29/Elgin

3.6

2.95

June 29/Elgin

1.79

2.07

June 29/Elgin

1.51

3.72

June 29/Elgin

1.46

1.93

June 29/Elgin

2.06

2.22

June 30/Elgin

2.32

3.09

June 30/Elgin

1.44

2.8

June 30/Elgin

2.03

3.11

June 30/Elgin

2.15

2.56

June 30/Elgin

2.06

1.92

June 30/Elgin

1.49

2.46

July 1/Elgin

1.55

3.37

July 1/Elgin

2.11

3.83

July 1/Elgin

1.26

3.3

July 1/Elgin

1.68

4.02

July 2/Elgin

2.09

1.65

July 3/Elgin

1.9

2.1

July 3/Lugoff

1.6

3.2

July 3/Elgin

1.4

1.96

July 3/Elgin

1.1

5.0

July 7/Elgin

2.1

4.0

July 8/Elgin

1.6

2.5

July 8/Elgin

1.4

3.8

July 14/Elgin

1.3

2.5

July 15/Elgin

1.6

3.3

July 18/Elgin

1.2

3.2

July 19/Elgin

2.2

1.8

July 19/Elgin

2.1

3.2

July 24/Lugoff

2.3

2.4

July 25/Lugoff

2.1

2.2

July 30/Elgin

1.8

3.6

July 31/Elgin

1.7

1.6

Aug. 3/Elgin

1.8

3.0

Aug. 9/Boykin

1.6

6.9

Aug. 15/Elgin

1.5

3.6

Aug. 18/Homeland Park

2.1

0.03