An Earthquake Startled the Northeast

A 4.8-magnitude earthquake sent tremors from Philadelphia to Boston this morning, rattling New York City skyscrapers and surprising many East Coasters. Some ran out of their homes. Others hung on to a piece of furniture for dear life. Air traffic was briefly halted. But no major damage has been reported.

The earthquake struck at 10:23 a.m. Eastern, with an epicenter near Whitehouse Station, N.J. — about 40 miles west of New York City — according to the United States Geological Survey. It was the largest quake within 250 miles of Manhattan in more than 30 years, and the third largest since the data began in 1957. New Yorkers are more familiar with much smaller tremors, which usually go unnoticed in a city full of rumbles.

The quake, which would have been relatively minor in places more prone to shakes, revealed potential shortcomings in New York’s emergency notification system: A text warning went out nearly 40 minutes after the earthquake hit. The city is also filled with old brick buildings, and officials said they remained concerned about the aftereffects of the quake.

The Israeli military announced today that two officers had been removed from their posts and three senior commanders were reprimanded for their role in the drone strikes that killed seven aid workers in Gaza this week.

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