Buffalo earthquake: 3.8 magnitude quake hits New York

Buffalo earthquake

Buffalo earthquake today

Some people in western New York might have woken up to shaking this morning.

A magnitude 3.8 earthquake hit around 6:15 a.m. Monday in the Buffalo area.  The shaking was considered "light" from the event but hundreds of people filed shaking reports according to the United States Geological Survey.

The quake hit just outside of West Seneca, New York. There were reports of shaking in Rochester.  The earthquake was felt as far away as Toronto, about 65 miles from the earthquake.

The quake happened about 3.0 km underground.

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There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

The quake was initially reported as a more substantial 4.2 seismic event but the intensity level was later dropped.

The USGS says this part of southern Ontario and western New York State has had moderately frequent earthquakes at least since the first one was reported in 1840. The largest (magnitude 4.9) caused moderate damage in 1929 near Attica, New York.

A seismologist says it was the region’s strongest quake in at least 40 years.

The shaking lasted only a few seconds but sent residents unaccustomed to earthquakes to social media in search of an explanation.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.