Tremor based in Goochland shakes buildings, windows in area.

Virginia's second earthquake of the year rattled the region this afternoon, cracking windows near the epicenter and jamming phone lines from Washington to Richmond.

The earth began rumbling at 3:59 p.m. and the tremors lasted about 20 seconds, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The quake, centered in Goochland County about 50 miles from Fredericksburg, measured 4.5 on the Richter scale.

Many people across the Fredericksburg region reported phone problems in the wake of the tremor. A Verizon spokesman said there was no problem with lines; there were just too many people trying to make calls.

Virginia quakes

While California gets all the credit, earthquakes aren’t new to Virginia. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the state has had more than 160 of them since 1977, 16 percent of which were felt. Recorded quakes here date back nearly 230 years:

Feb. 21, 1774, an earthquake knocks houses off their foundations in Blandford and Petersburg. Fredericksburg feels tremors but sustains no damage. Magnitude: 4.5.

Nov. 2, 1852, chimneys are damaged at Buckingham, about 30 miles south of Charlottesville. The quake is reported to be “quite strong” in Fredericksburg, Richmond and Scottsville. Magnitude: 4.3.

May 31, 1897, Virginia’s most intense earthquake hits Giles County, but its impact is felt as far away as Bluefield, W.Va. and Bristol, Tenn. Magnitude: 5.8.

Sept. 6, 1919, a quake strikes near Front Royal, damaging chimneys and muddying streams primarily in Warren and Rappahannock counties.

June 25, 2001, a small tremor shakes buildings and windows in Culpeper. Magnitude: 2 to 2.5.

May 5, 2003, a quake strikes about five miles from Columbia, a small town in Fluvanna County about 50 miles southwest of Fredericksburg. It rattles parts of Spotsylvania, Orange and Louisa counties. Magnitude: 3.9.

Many area residents didn't know what to make of the rumbling at first.

At Hyperion Espresso in downtown Fredericksburg, customers thought it was just a big truck passing by.

Michelle Shanks, a social services worker in Culpeper, said she thought someone was moving a cart upstairs in the Davis Street office building. She quickly realized something else was happening.

"It felt like the whole wall, not just the ceiling, was moving," Shanks said.

In the Executive Plaza, the tallest building in Fredericksburg, some workers were so worried they fled outside. At the Virginia State capitol, workers officials and reporters scrambled from the building after about 10 seconds of rumbling so pronounced that the walls and windows could be seen shaking.

Residents as far north as Maryland and the District of Columbia, and as far south as central North Carolina reported feeling tremors.

Virginia's Department of Emergency Management was collecting reports from jurisdictions around the state. It had no immediate reports of significant damages or injuries.

In May, a quake measuring 3.9 on the Richter scale shook Spotsylvania, Orange and Louisa counties. That tremor lasted about 20 seconds, but caused no damages or injuries.

That quake was centered in Fluvanna County, close to where the epicenter of today's quake occurred.

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