A 4.8 magnitude earthquake approximately one mile from Tewksbury, New Jersey at 10:23 a.m. shakes up Stroudsburg. The earthquake rumbled  New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, Connecticut, and New Jersey alike.

On the Richter Scale, a 4.8 is a second-level earthquake. These level earthquakes occur commonly and can potentially cause minor damage.

“At first, I thought someone was moving furniture below my classroom,” said Ms. Ilene Austin. “This was the biggest earthquake I have felt in my life. It was surreal.”

Earthquakes generally occur on fault lines between tectonic plates. Tewksbury just so happens to be right above one of these fault lines known as the Ramapo Fault Line.

This earthquake is nothing to worry about. Approximately 500,000 earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 to 5.4 occur every year worldwide.

“I have experienced one other minor earthquake during school,” said Mr. Jeffrey Sodl. “It was many years ago, and ironically we were talking about an old earthquake in India when it occurred.”

Our high school was shaken yet no damage occurred, and school will continue as normal.