Midwest feels 5.4 earthquake Friday morning
An earthquake rattled the mid-west on Friday morning.
The 5.4 quake was centered in Illinois and occurred just after 4:30 a.m. The U.S. Geological survey says the earthquake hit in what is known as the Illinois basin-Ozark dome region.
Chicago, Cincinnati, Milwaukee, and Des Moines, Iowa (450 miles northwest of the epicenter) all felt the shock.
Authorities say they have no reports of major damage or injuries.
WEST SALEM, Illinois (AP) -- An earthquake Illinois early Friday, and it appeared to rival the strongest temblor ever recorded in Midwest region.
The quake jolted residents in several nearby states as well, but no injuries or significant property damage were immediately reported.
The quake, measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale, hit just before 4:37 a.m. local time (1037 GMT) and was centered six miles from West Salem, Illinois.
"It shook our house where it woke me up," said David Behm of Philo, Illinois. "Windows were rattling, and you could hear it. The house was shaking inches. For people in central Illinois, this is a big deal. It's not like California."
The jolts were felt in a region that included parts of the states of Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri and Arkansas, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Its Web site said earthquakes seldom occur in the area, and that the largest recorded earthquake in the region -- also a magnitude 5.4 -- caused damage in southern Illinois in 1968.
Friday's quake shook buildings in central Chicago and the cities of Indianapolis, Indiana; Cincinnati, Ohio; and St. Louis, Missouri.