A magnitude 5.8 earthquake that rocked western Montana early Thursday morning was the largest quake to hit the area in the past 20 year, the U.S. Geological Survey said.
USGS geophysicist Robert Sanders told the Los Angeles Times that the quake of this magnitude was a “very rare event” but not “impossible.”
The earthquake struck around 12:30 a.m. local time with the epicenter located in Lincoln, which is outside Missoula. Some Twitter users posted feeling tremors as far as Spokane, Wash., Boise, Idaho and Calgary, Canada. The quake was followed by aftershocks in the magnitude 3 and 4 range over the next hour, Sanders said.
Residents in Lincoln briefly lost power and there was a gas leak in Helena, the National Weather Service in Great Falls said on Twitter.
There have been no immediate reports of damage or injuries, but residents will get a better sense as day breaks.
The Independent Record reported the tremblor was strong enough to knock items off shelves and walls in homes in Helena, which is about 34 miles away from the epicenter.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/07/06/montana-earthquake-5-8-magnitude-earthquake-felt-in-region.html