2.8 Magnitude Earth Quake Reported Near West Gardiner, Maine

First, it was great white sharks in the water off the coast of Maine, now comes an earthquake that measured 2.8 on the Richter scale near West Gardiner, Maine.

Where Did The Earthquake Hit?

The United States Geological Survey, better known as USGS, is the government agency that, among other things, detects earthquakes and their magnitude worldwide. On Sunday, July 28 at 2:50 p.m. USGS detected a 2.8 magnitude earthquake in Maine near West Gardiner with the epicenter at these coordinates: 44.236°N 69.862°W. That's about here on the map, south of Augusta and northeast of West Gardiner.

Those coordinates are not 100% accurate as USGS reports some uncertainty in its data at this time and the actual epicenter could be anywhere in a radius of about 4.5 miles from where this pin is on the map above.

How much of a threat was this earthquake?

Not much at all. There were reports of people feeling it, but the USGS says that a Richter scale level between 2 and 3 is felt only by a few persons at rest, especially on upper floors of buildings. Delicately suspended objects may swing, but that's about it.

Earthquakes from 2 to 3 on the Richter scale are very common, occurring several hundred times a day across the globe which works out to millions of these small earthquakes a year, all doing little to no damage. It isn't until you get to 7 or 8 on the Richter scale that large damage can occur. So we're all good here in Maine.

How Many Earthquakes Have Been Recorded in Maine

The Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry keeps a record of earthquakes felt in Maine from 1997 to today. Four earthquakes have been felt in Maine in 2024 yet not all have originated in Maine. One was in New Jersey and felt slightly by some people.

The largest earthquake that originated in Maine happened on October 16, 2012, when a 4.5 magnitude earthquake occurred in East Waterboro, 13 miles northwest of Saco. Damage was minimal.

The largest earthquake to ever occur in Maine was on March 21, 1904, and centered in Eastport, Maine. It doesn't have a Richter scale number because the scale wasn't invented until 1935, but modern-day estimates put it at 5.9.

No Maine earthquake has ever caused significant damage, so you can rest easy.