Magna pupils feel 2.6 quake

Teachers and students at Magna Elementary School didn't know what was going on when they felt the ground rumble beneath their feet.

"We felt, like, a big boom," said Susan White, a secretary at Magna Elementary School at 8500 W. 3100 South. "We thought maybe it was an airplane."

No, it wasn't a jetliner fly-by, but a small 2.6 magnitude earthquake, the second quake to hit Utah Thursday.

The minor quake occurred at 2:22 p.m., and was centered about two miles northeast of Magna, said Jim Pechmann, a University of Utah seismologist. Salt Lake County Sheriff's dispatchers said there were no reports of damage or injuries.

Pechmann said a 2.0 quake was felt in the same area on Tuesday.

A magnitude 3.3 earthquake hit Central Utah Thursday morning. The quake occurred at 7:58 a.m., and was centered about 100 miles south of Salt Lake City, said U. seismologist Kris Pankow.

Residents in Nephi and Levan, each less than 10 miles from the epicenter, reported items falling off the shelves but no injuries, Pankow said.

There were no reports of damage, but residents said they felt the rumble from the quake, said Juab County Sheriff Alden Orme.

Two 3.7 magnitude earthquakes were recorded in the area in December, and smaller earthquakes have been felt since, Pankow said.

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E-mail: ldethman@desnews.com

Contributing: Associated Press