Virginia earthquake felt in metro Atlanta

ATLANTA,None — A 5.9 magnitude earthquake centered in Virginia was felt across metro Atlanta and north Georgia on Tuesday.

Earthquake hits near nation's capital

The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake was half a mile deep and originated near Louisa, VA which is northwest of Richmond and south of Washington.

Channel 2 Action News viewers reported shaking in metro Atlanta minutes after the quake hit. Residents in Dunwoody, Alpharetta, Douglasville and Athens reported feeling the quake on Twitter. Tremors were reported in nearly every metro county by residents reacting on Facebook.

"The table just started rocking. I was like, 'Why is the table rocking?'" Corri Francis told Channel 2's Mike Petchenik inside his Alpharetta home.

"About eight seconds of swaying in slow motion. Two minutes later, my cousin comes down here and he was like, 'Are you doing something down here? and I was like, "No.'" Francis said. Francis's home off Windward Parkway is more than 500 miles from the quake epicenter.

Jane Smith called the Channel 2 Action News newsroom on Tuesday afternoon from Gainesville where she said the building shook and workers saw water splash in their glasses.

"It was like you were baffled. We have no clue. So we kind of silently went back to work and then one of the girls got on her iPhone and saw where there was an earthquake in Virginia," Smith said.

Atlanta police Lt. Curtis Davenport said he was not aware of any 911 calls to the city's police department regarding the quake.

Strong shaking was felt at the White House, which was evacuated along with the Capitol and the Pentagon. There were reports of several injuries.

Channel 2 Washington Bureau Chief Heidi Weidenbauer reported, "the earthquake shook (our) building severely. We are evacuated. Cells aren't working."

President Obama and many of the nation's leaders were out of town on August vacation when the quake struck. The shaking was felt on the Martha's Vineyard golf course as Obama was just starting a round.

Flights at several major airports were put on hold at major airports in the Washington and New York areas. Ceiling tiles had fallen in the terminal of Reagan National in the Washington area, officials said.

WSBTV