Strong Earthquake Hits Nevada

An early morning earthquake struck in Nevada on Friday, centered about 160 miles southeast of Reno, measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale according to data released by the US Geological Survey. The epicenter of the quake was located around 20 miles southeast of the town of Mina and measured 3.9 miles deep.

Residents in Nevada and California reported feeling the shaking just before 1:15 am local time. The quake was felt as far away as the Central Valley and Sierra Nevada Mountain regions of California, spanning hundreds of square miles from the epicenter.

This is the second largest earthquake in Nevada to occur this year. The largest earthquake in the state, which measured 6.5 in magnitude, struck a remote region 225 miles northwest of the populated city of Las Vegas in May. It was the largest earthquake in Nevada in the past 66 years and was felt as far north and west as the Sacramento Valley and the Reno-Tahoe areas of California as well as the San Joaquin Valley east of the San Francisco Bay Area.