Earthquake Along New Madrid Fault Rattles Georgia, Tennessee; More Aftershocks Possible

ATLANTA (WSB-TV) — People across Georgia were woken up by an earthquake.

The U.S. Geological Survey reported the quake happened around 4:15 a.m. near Decatur, Tennessee. It had a magnitude of 4.4. An aftershock of 3.3 magnitude happened about 15 minutes later.

[READ: Georgia reacts to the rare earthquake]

Channel 2 Action News received dozens of phone calls in the minutes following the quake.

WSB-TV spoke to Geophysicist Robert Sanders from the U.S. Geological Survey on Channel 2 Action News This Morning who said that aftershocks will be possible throughout the day after the quake.

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The earthquake happened along the New Madrid Fault Line, which is along the Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi state lines.

The earthquake was the second strongest on record in East Tennessee, according to the USGS. The strongest was a magnitude 4.7 near Maryville in 1973.

There have been several small earthquakes in northwest Georgia over the past few years, including a 1.9 magnitude near Villanow, in Walker County, in August.

A 2.7 quake was reported in Catoosa County, near Fort Oglethorpe, in January, and a 2.3 hit Trion, in Chattooga County, in November 2017. In July 2017, a 2.2 quake was registered just north of LaFayette in Walker County.