August 23, 2011: A rare East Coast earthquake occurs, measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale, with its epicenter in Cuckoo, Virginia.
You read that right: The community was named after a cuckoo clock in the Colonial-era tavern. The nearest full town is Louisa, namesake and seat of Louisa County. The epicenter was 50 miles northwest of the State capital of Richmond, and 100 miles southwest of the national capital of Washington, D.C.
Among the damage in Washington was to the Washington Monument and the National Cathedral. The Monument was closed for repairs for 3 years; the Cathedral was closed for a few weeks, but, as of August 23, 2022, repairs were still being done.
about 550 feet above the ground.
At the time, I was working in Sayreville, on the New York side of New Jersey. My office was in a typical 1960s box-type building that never looked all that stable, and, despite being a little over 300 miles from the epicenter, I thought the building was going to collapse. I thought the shaking was a combination of the bad building and the noisy Indian IT guys in the office next door.
It was only the 2nd earthquake I can remember, following the one at 3.8 that was centered in Marlboro, New Jersey that interrupted my 4th grade class in East Brunswick in 1979.
UPDATE: On April 5, 2024, a quake measuring 4.8 was centered on Lebanon, New Jersey.
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August 23, 2011 was a Tuesday. None of the Major League Baseball games scheduled for this day were postponed due to the earthquake, and were played, with the results as follows:
* The New York Yankees lost to the Oakland Athletics, 6-5 at Yankee Stadium. Brandon McCarthy, later a Yankee, outpitched Bartolo Colón. Nick Swisher and Jorge Posada hit home runs. Derek Jeter went 3-for-3 with a walk. Alex Rodriguez did not play. Brandon Allen hit 2 home runs for the A's.
* The New York Mets lost to the Philadelphia Phillies, 9-4 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Vance Worley outpitched Jon Niese. Shane Victorino and John Mayberry Jr. hit home runs for the Phils, while Lucas Duda hit one for the Mets.
* The Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Washington Nationals, 2-0 at Nationals Park in Washington. Ian Kennedy pitched 7 innings of 6-hit shutout ball, and David Hernandez and J.J. Putz finished the 6-hit shutout.
* The Detroit Tigers beat the Tampa Bay Rays, 2-1 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.
* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Florida Marlins, 8-6 at Sun Life Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami Gardens, Florida.
* The Kansas City Royals beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 6-4 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.
* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 11-4 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh.
* The Seattle Mariners beat the Cleveland Indians, 12-7 at Progressive Field in Cleveland.
* The Atlanta Braves beat the Chicago Cubs, 5-4 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.
* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Minnesota Twins, 8-1 at Target Field in Minneapolis.
* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 13-2 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.
* The Boston Red Sox beat the Texas Rangers, 11-5 at Rangers Ballpark (now Choctaw Stadium) in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. Adrián González hit 2 home runs.
* The Colorado Rockies beat the Houston Astros, 8-6 at Coors Field in Denver.
* The Los Angeles Angels beat the Chicago White Sox, 5-4 at Angel Stadium of Anaheim.
* And the San Diego Padres beat the San Francisco Giants, 7-5 at AT&T Park (now Oracle Park) in San Francisco.
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