Tremors from earthquake felt locally

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Employees and patrons of Naugatuck Town Hall briefly evacuated the building Tuesday shortly before 2 p.m. after feeling tremors from a 5.8-magnitude earthquake that originated in Virginia.

Mayor Robert Mezzo said he was holding a meeting in his office when he thought someone was shaking the conference table before he realized the whole building was shaking.

“Everyone was out of here in under five minutes,” Mezzo said.

Outside, other people from buildings down Church Street were also milling around, he said.

The fire department quickly inspected the building and determined there was no damage, so people returned to the building shortly thereafter, Mezzo said.

Mezzo said he has gotten several phone calls from around the borough reporting similar circumstances, but no reports of damage or injuries.

“If people see new cracks or substantial damage, they’re advised to call 911,” Mezzo said.

Other area towns also reported localized tremors.

In Beacon Falls, people at Town Hall did not feel the earthquake, but people reported feeling it at the fire house and Wolfe Avenue up to South Street, according to First Selectman Susan Cable.

“The people who did feel it, it was pretty scary. … We were very fortunate,” Cable said.

She also said there were no evacuations or reports of damage or injury.

In Prospect, Mayor Robert Chatfield said the only person who reported feeling the quake was Gwenn Fischer at the Prospect Pages.

He said Prospect is built on a ledge of hard rock, so probably felt it less than sandy areas.

“We didn’t feel a thing,” he said.