Earthquake Swarm Rattles Idaho Central Highlands

I used to joke with friends who live in the state’s central highlands.  What do you call it when there’s an earthquake in your county?  Thursday!  Or any day for that matter.  That’s how it appears over the last couple of weeks.  There has been a swarm of small quakes just west of the Bitterroot Range and north of the Boise Mountains.  These aren’t necessarily powerful quakes but can be annoying.  I’ve been through a few small to medium quakes in my life and it’s like being on a cruise ship but you don’t rock all day and night as you do on the boat.

A writer says these small quakes are not a sign that the Yellowstone caldera is about to pop.

Aftershocks Continue

The current shaking is a series of aftershocks that followed the big Stanley temblor a couple of years ago.  That one cracked the garage floor at the house of some friends but otherwise was mainly felt by coyotes and moose.  There aren’t many people living in the area.

A friend told me that he was shaken out of bed a few years ago when Elko had a strong earthquake.  He lives here in Twin Falls County.  The shaking used to wake me if it happened when I was sleeping but not in recent years.  My rattling radar must be out of tune.

Idaho's Worst Quake Killed People

Nearly 40 years have passed since the strongest quake to ever strike Idaho.  Borah Peak in 1983.  A lot of people alive today have no memory of the event.  Many weren’t yet even born.  Tragically, it killed two young children.