TERRIFIED New York City residents are sharing their shocked reactions after an earthquake rippled through the northeast.
Some feared the rapture had begun when the 4.8 magnitude tremor shook across New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.
On Friday morning at about 10:23 am, an earthquake rattled the towering buildings of New York City.
The quake was felt across the northeast, with residents in Maine, Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Maryland all reporting they felt the shuddering blow.
The epicenter of the quake was near Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, an unincorporated community about an hour west of New York City, according to a US Geological Survey.
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It was the strongest to hit New Jersey in nearly 250 years, and the strongest New York had seen in over 130 years, according to state data.
It's unclear whether the quake caused any serious damages, and officials said they are assessing the city.
Social media was awash with posts from residents in the northeastern states sharing their reactions to the seismic event.
"That went from 'I'm sure it's just a nearby subway' to 'the rapture has begun' in about 7 seconds," one person in New York wrote on X.
Another person said, "It's the apocalypse. New York doesn't have earthquakes."
Someone else shared dramatic surveillance footage from their home in Lebanon, New Jersey, which is near the epicenter, that captured the quake.
The video showed the camera shaking around for about seven seconds before everything returned to normal.
"Felt like a train going through my house," the X user said.
A teacher in the New York City borough of Queens said everyone in her classroom felt shuddering but didn't react like everyone else.
"My whole classroom was shaking. My kids loved it," Jessica R. told The U.S. Sun.
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TRAVEL DRAMA
Some people announced they were OK while others wondered whether the quake would affect operations in the city.
Travelers at surrounding airports described huge waves being felt in the buildings.
"At Newark airport and that earthquake just shook the whole terminal," a flier wrote on X.
"Though a plane's brakes broke or some s**t and crashed into a gate."
The Federal Aviation Administration temporarily grounded all flights in Newark and John F. Kennedy International Airports following the quake.
Fliers traveling through New York City area airports can expect delays of up to 45 minutes, according to the FAA.
The New York Police Department has urged residents to only call 911 if they are in immediate damage as they investigate the impact of the quakes.
HISTORY OF QUAKES
New York City has experienced earthquakes in the past, but they are rarely as strong as Friday's seismic event.
The city saw another quake earlier this year that led to power outages and reports of explosive sounds.
On January 2, New York City's Roosevelt Island, which lies between the boroughs of Manhattan and Queens, lost power after a 1.7-magnitude quake rocked the city.
There were no injuries due to the quake and no structural damage was reported.
New York City has had earthquake safety provisions added to its building code since 1995, but most of the city's nearly 1 million buildings were raised before then, The New York Times reported.
This means that many skyscrapers are vulnerable to seismic activity.
A 2.0 magnitude aftershock was reported in New Jersey at around 11:20 am Friday, but it was likely too weak to be felt, according to a US Geological Survey.
Officials said if any strong aftershocks move through the city residents should drop to the ground and find something to protect their heads.