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MOUNT PLEASANT, N.Y. Although the epicenter of the earthquake was in Virginia, some residents in the Mount Pleasant area said they felt the rumblings of the reported 5.9 magnitude quake.
Carolynn Moen, who works at IBM in Hawthorne, described on Facebook what she experienced. "The building swayed, open doors were going back and forth, I am on the second of fourth floors...chairs rolled a bit...while in my chair...I felt the swaying in the small of my back. People on the ground level left the building, but no evacuation announcement issued. Now we are cautious of aftershocks."
However, at the Mount Pleasant Town Pool, just less than three miles away from the IBM building in Hawthorne, staff members and lifeguards said they did not feel any of the rumblings.
Ned McCormack, a spokesperson for Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino, said the county believes there was no serious damage or injuries in the county.
One local point that may be a concern in the Westchester area in the event of an earthquake is the Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant. However, Governor Andrew Cuomo said the power plant was unaffected by the tremor and aftershocks.
Betty Whelan, a Pleasantville resident, said she felt the rumblings while she was at work at Westchester Meadows in Valhalla.
"Nothing on my desk was really moving around but I definitely felt my chair moving around on the ground," Whelan said.
Whelan said the last time she can remember feeling an earthquake in Mount Pleasant was around 20 years ago and that experiencing an earthquake was the last thing on her mind.
Paul Faust, co-founder of the Pleasantville company 1-800-PREPARE.com, specializes in kits and products that can help residents in the event of a natural disaster. Faust believes that people should be more aware of the dangers of possible earthquakes and that this may open eyes.
"Everybody procrastinates and thinks 'ah whatever', but things like this can happen around here and it's not about panicking it's about just being prepared and I think this could be a wake-up call," Faust said.
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