Live updates: Earthquake rattles New Jersey, New York and other parts of the Northeast (2024)

A 4.8 magnitude earthquake that rattled buildings across parts of the Northeast Friday morning was the third largest earthquake recorded in the area in the last 50 years, according to data from the US Geological Survey.

The largest, a 5.3 magnitude quake, happened in Au Sable Forks, New York, in 2002.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said there were no reports of major damage to infrastructure, and no reports of injuries, following the earthquake in neighboring New Jersey Friday morning.

Shaking was felt widely throughout the city, where many residents are unaccustomed to even relatively mild quakes.

"New Yorkers should go about their normal day," Adams said at a news briefing. "First responders are working to make sure the city is safe."

Adams said there are no concerns for school buildings following the earthquake and the safest place for students is to remain at school.

The mayor thanked first responders and warned residents to be prepared for the possibility of aftershocks.

President Joe Biden spoke with New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy about Friday’s earthquake, according to the White House.

“The President said his Administration is in touch with state and local officials and will provide assistance if needed,” the White House added.

Earlier Friday, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre posted on social media that the president had been briefed on the earthquake and was monitoring “potential impacts.”

The epicenter of the 4.8 magnitude earthquake was just northeast of Lebanon, New Jersey, less than 50 miles west of New York City, according to the USGS.

New York officials say there has only been a single report of a gas lineleakso far in the wake of the quake that hit in the area, but so far there's no “major” infrastructure impact.

New York’s Director of State Operations Kathryn Garcia said the quake was “significantly bigger” than “ones that are typically felt in the state of New York or occur and actually are not felt.”

“While highly unusual in the state of New York, we do actually have fault lines,” Garcia said.

The state is tracking whether there are any increases in hospitalizations or vehicle accidents, none of which have been reported at this time.

There was one gasleakreported in Rockland County, which is north of New York City and on the west side of the Hudson River, but other than that, there doesn’t “seem yet to be a major infrastructure impact,” New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services Jackie Bray added.

Flights are now arriving and departing from Newark Liberty International Airport, in the New York City area after being paused due to the Friday morning quake, officials said.

The air traffic control tower was evacuated, and controllers moved to a nearby location.That evacuation and the Port Authority's runway inspections caused flights to be held for a short time earlier in the day.

The Federal Aviation Administration says flights may be delayed 45 minutes into Newark.The ground stop is holding planes that haven't yet left for Newark from departing.

Earlier Friday, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the full ground stop at Newark Airport.

Meanwhile, Hochul said Amtrak, the rail company with train service throughout the Northeast, and the MTA, which runs New York's public transportation including the subway system, were both on "full schedule" with "no disruption at this time."

Amtrak had said earlier that it initiated some speed restrictions while it inspected its tracks.

New Jersey Transit, meanwhile, has reported some disruptions.

CNN's Greg Wallace contributed reporting to this post.

Shaking from a preliminary 4.8 magnitude earthquake centered in northern New Jersey was felt by millions of people across hundreds of miles of the Northeast on Friday, from the Washington, DC, region to New England — a phenomenon made more likely by a few factors, including the geology of the region itself, according to the US Geological Survey.

The quake was shallow, occurring just 5 km beneath the Earth's surface. This is on the extreme end of what the USGSconsiders a shallow earthquake: 0 to 70 km deep. The energy released by an earthquake is blunted by distance, so a shallower quake of the same magnitude as a deeper one will produce much more intense shaking at the surface.

The unique characteristics of the rocks that make up the Earth’s crust and mantle in the eastern US also play a role in how far the most intense waves of seismic energy can travel. Rocks here are much older, denser and harder — compressed by time — than they are in the West,according to the USGS. This makes them more efficient conduits of the seismic energy released by an earthquake, allowing it to travel in a more potent form over longer distances.

Buildings are also older in the Northeast and therefore may not be designed to the latest earthquake code, the USGS notes. This is particularly a concern for shorter buildings like houses. Earthquakes tend to shake in a faster back-and-forth motion in the East compared to the West, which puts smaller buildings more at risk for damage, the USGS notes.

This morning’s earthquake in New Jersey was briefly felt at the United Nations headquarters in New York, during a briefing on the war in the Middle East.

A meeting of the UN Security Council came to a brief pause as the CEO of a humanitarian organization briefed officials on the situation in Gaza.

A video feed from inside the headquarters started to shake as Save the Children US president and chief executive Janti Soeripto addressed the council, and officials can be seen looking around the building and at one another in response to the tremor.

Shaking from Monday’s earthquake was felt as far north as Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont and as far south as the Washington, DC, region, according to reports submitted to the US Geological Survey.

About 9,000 people felt "strong shaking" near the epicenter in New Jersey, which isdescribed by USGS as “felt by all” and can move heavy furniture and cause slight damage.

Close to300,000 people felt “moderateshaking," which could be strong enough to break windows or cause dishes to fall.

More than23 million people felt “lightshaking”which is felt by most people and can cause cars to rock noticeably and cause a sensation like a truck striking a building.

New York City public schools are continuing to operate following this morning's earthquake, and there is "no need for parents to report to schools," officials posted on X.

There is "no indication" that the city's public schools were compromised, officials added.