Quake shakes Bonner County
SANDPOINT — A magnitude 4.1 earthquake rattled Bonner County on Thursday evening, according to the U.S. Geological Service.
“We have no reports of damage in the county so far,” said Bob Howard, Bonner County’s Director of Emergency Management.
The quake was detected at 7:32 p.m. and was centered about 14 miles southeast of Sandpoint, a preliminary earthquake report from USGS said. It registered at 22 stations and its depth was measured at 5 kilometers.
After the quake, Bonner Dispatch received numerous reports of an explosion from callers in Sandpoint, Sagle, Hope and elsewhere. Residents at Priest Lake and Bonners Ferry also felt it.
“We felt it up here in Samuels! Cupboard doors popped partially open & banged shut a couple of times,” Cari and Jimmy Cruse said in a message posted to the Daily Bee’s Facebook page.
“Lots of shaking and my dog is traumatized,” Carrie Block Corallino said in a post to the Bee’s Facebook page.
A USGS ShakeMap indicated that it could be felt in Boundary and Kootenai counties, in addition to eastern Washington and western Montana.
The most recent earthquake activity in North Idaho was in 2003, when a magnitude 3.3 quake struck near Rathdrum, according to USGS.
An intensity VI shock in 1942 centered near Sandpoint affected 25,000 square miles of Idaho, Washington and Montana. The Northern Pacific Railroad partially suspended operations to make sure boulders and slides were not covering any tracks.
“Church services were interrupted, but only minor damage was reported by homes,” the USGS earthquake almanac for Idaho said.
The largest recorded earthquake in Idaho occurred in 1983, when a magnitude 6.9 earthquake near Borah Peak struck. It caused two deaths in Challis and an estimated $12.5 million in damage.
Thursday’s quake touched off a wave of speculation that it might be related to volcanic activity in the region or the globe. Howard said it was not immediately clear if the quake was directly related to volcanic activity, but he plans to discuss that aspect with Idaho Bureau of Homeland Security and USGS officials today.