Did you feel it? A minor earthquake shook Roane County Sunday morning.
According to U.S. Geological Survey's seismic monitoring system, the 2.5 magnitude quake struck Sunday around 10:48 UTC, which is 6:48 a.m. in eastern daylight time.
The USGS said the quake sent tremors to a nearly 7 km radius. People on the far western edge of Knox County also reported feeling the quake on the USGS site.
The minor quake was one of three that were felt in an area of notable seismic activity along a diagonal line from Alabama to the Kentucky state line near Middlesboro over the last 7 days.
According to a federal study conducted by the USGS in 2017, East Tennessee has seen a significant uptick in small quakes like these and is in an area of increased risk for a Category V intensity earthquake within the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale. Category V earthquakes are medium intensity on that scale, causing moderate shaking felt by most people but not significant damage.
The USGS said the chances of an earthquake stronger than that in our area is about one percent, and about a 99 percent chance that it would be weaker.
Western Tennesseans along the New Madrid Seismic Zone at the Missouri boot heel are at much greater risk of strong Category VI, VII and possibly even VIII+ earthquakes. A quake in that range could cause minor to widespread damage and pose a significant danger to people and property.
In the past few years, the USGS has modified its earthquake predictions for the East Tennessee area. A survey in 2014 showed the area was at the second-highest hazard level for seismic activity potential.
In the past 365 days, Tennessee has seen 264 earthquakes -- all of which were below 3.7 magnitude.