2.6 magnitude earthquake strikes west of Columbia near SC-GA line

MCCORMICK COUNTY, SC (WIS) - The U.S. Geological Service has recorded an earthquake near the Georgia-South Carolina border Thursday.

The 2.6-magnitude earthquake struck 1.24 miles east-southeast of McCormick, SC around 2:24 a.m.

The USGS says earthquakes in this area happen infrequently.

"Since at least 1776, people living inland in North and South Carolina, and in adjacent parts of Georgia and Tennessee, have felt small earthquakes and suffered damage from infrequent larger ones," the USGS website says. "The largest earthquake in the area (magnitude 5.1) occurred in 1916. Moderately damaging earthquakes strike the inland Carolinas every few decades, and smaller earthquakes are felt about once each year or two."

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