An angel, dislodged from the southwest pinnacle of the "Gloria in Excelsis" or central tower, lies on the roof of the Washington National Cathedral following a 5.8-magnitude earthquake which rumbled through Washington on Aug. 24.
Well, I had another first in Canada yesterday- I felt my first earthquake in Toronto! I must admit I have been sheltered in my thinking that I will never be in an earthquake on the east coast or in Canada- but now I know better! The quake originated in VA but the 5.8 magnitude shocker could be felt here in downtown Toronto. Original reports stated that the quake could be felt as far as New York City- but believe me it came up to Canada!
I was home at the time but at first was disorientated as to why my place was gently rocking back and forth. After a few seconds (realizing it was an earthquake) I started to get nervous about all of my art on the wall- for fear everything would start falling off! After about 10 seconds I started to get a seasick feeling hoping it would just stop. The gentle rocking motion did stop- and I quickly jumped online to hear updates about the earthquake from friends in the States. I was concerned to hear that three pinnacles in the central tower of the Washington National Cathedral, (the highest building in the city), broke off in the quake according to reports from The Washington Post. That area is close to my heart as I worked at a school on the Cathedral grounds so thankfully everyone (and overall structure) seems to be okay. (Scary to think I would have been sitting around the cathedral at that time for my break if I was there).
Thankfully, everyone is ok- but this rare event on the east coast has me realize that an earthquake can happen anywhere!
Image Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post_now/post/national-cathedral-quake-damage-is-not-structural/2011/08/24/gIQAKa1obJ_blog.html
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