Magnitude 4.3 earthquake rattles Ottawa Valley

Area residents felt the ground shake at 1:36 p.m. on Wednesday, March 16 following a magnitude 4.3 earthquake centered just southeast of Hawkesbury.

The earthquake rattled a wide area from the Laurentians, north of Montreal, all the way to the Ottawa region. The shaking lasted approximately 10 to 20 seconds.

Natural Resources Canada confirmed the epicentre was about six kilometres southeast of Hawkesbury. The agency had initially reported it as being in Lachute.

The quake's magnitude was first reported at 4.3, while the United States Geological Survey later measured it at 3.7. The American agency later re-measured it as a 4.3.

There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

Immediately following the quake, numerous people flocked to The Review's website to post their comments on the event.

Holly Maisonet-Chatelois said, "I (felt it) and live in L'Orignal. It was a bad one... shook the foundation so bad I thought it was an explosion. My sister-in-law felt it too and she lives in Hawkesbury."

Pamela Dewar said she was on main street in Lachute when the earth shook, and Mark Maranta said he was in the Tupper Street area of Hawkesbury and noted "it felt almost like something blew up."

Edith Dinel Hall felt the tremor in Calumet, as did Kim MacLennan in Alexandria and Lucie Noble in Ottawa.

Even Sara Lomas, who lives in the Rosemont area of Montreal, said she felt the earth move.

"It was a trip," she commented via Facebook.

Last summer, a 5.0-magnitude earthquake rattled the region. The epicentre of that quake was in Val-des-Bois, Quebec, about 54 kilometres northeast of Ottawa. However, the worst damage was experienced in Gracefield, Quebec.

Similarly, a magnitude 3.9 quake shook its way through border towns lining Quebec and Ontario on February 27 last year.