February is Earthquake Awareness Month
•February 21, 2024•
The worst earthquake in Illinois history occurred on December 17, 1811, and was so strong that it rang a church bell in a Cairo church in southern Illinois. It also blew smoke, sand, and coal 30 yards into the air and made the Mississippi River flow backward for a moment.
“Not everyone in Illinois realizes that Illinois is susceptible to earthquakes because of the New Madrid Seismic Zone on the border with Missouri and the Wabash Valley Seismic Zone on our border with Indiana,” said Alicia Tate Nadeau, director of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security (IEMA-OHS). “Each of us need to be prepared for a quake whether it barely affects you and your home or whether it causes major, widespread damage.”