Earthquake probability in New England doubles after Maine temblor

(FOX 25 / MyFoxBoston.com) – The probability of having another earthquake in New England has doubled since the 4.0 magnitude earthquake that occurred on Oct. 16 in Maine.

John Ebel from the Weston Observatory told FOX 25's Tyisha Fernandes that although it is impossible to predict when earthquakes will occur, an increase in the amount of earthquakes definitely affects the probability that another one will occur.

Ebel said scientists go by averages, and the probability of having another quake this week rose from 9 percent to 22 percent following the Maine temblor.

"We really don't understand why, it's a phenomenon that we've documented. They exist in California, it's been documented to exist in other parts of the world," Ebel said.

Ebel was caught off guard when last week's earthquake occurred.

"I was sitting at home eating dinner with my wife, and all of a sudden we felt a boom, and the house started creaking and shuttering a little bit," Ebel said. "There's nothing in the seismic records, nothing in the elec fields, magnetic fields of the earth, anything like that, that we can detect that allows us to predict when earthquakes are coming."

The U.S. Geological Survey said the epicenter of last week's quake was about three miles west of Hollis Center, Maine, and about three miles deep.

The last known earthquake this size occurred in Bar Harbor, Maine in 2006. It was a 4.2 magnitude.

The quake was also felt in Vermont, New Hampshire and eastern Massachusetts and as far south as Rhode Island and Connecticut.

There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

Cox Media Group