This the first time I have experienced and reported an earthquake first hand, even though I have been in the disaster field for more than 30 years. Details are still coming in about the event: epicenter thought to be in VA; magnitude 5.8 event; impacts range from VA to Boston. Also people in OH and MI are said to be affected.

The USGS website has some details.  If you are truly curious about the epicenter’s characteristics and want to see a lot of details about the local geology, I recommend the American Geophysical Union’s blog.

Next up for the eastern seaboard of the U.S. — Hurricane Irene.  The National Hurricane Center and other weather experts are saying this will be a potentially huge storm.  Already estimates suggest it will cause damage in the billions.