Small earthquake rattles central New Jersey

Authorities say a small earthquake has struck central New Jersey, rattling windows and alarming residents of several communities.

Authorities say a small earthquake has struck central New Jersey, rattling windows and alarming residents of several communities.

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Won-Young Kim, a seismologist at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Palisades, New York, says a quake with a preliminary magnitude of 3.0 was recorded at 10:34 pm yesterday, centered in the Morris County communities of Rockaway, Dover and Morris Plains. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries. Quakes of magnitude 2.5 to 3 are the smallest that can generally be felt by people.

Police say the quake triggered a flood of emergency calls, with residents reporting a sound like an explosion and houses shaking. Kim says small earthquakes are not unusual in that area of New Jersey.