N.C. Earthquake Centered Near Dr. Grabow Factory

[mso489]

A 5.1 (reports vary) earthquake with the epicenter near Sparta, N.C., in the northwest of N.C. near the Virginia border and felt throughout the state, at about 8 a.m. on Sunday, August 9, 2020, and it was felt as far away as Atlanta. Best wishes and concern for all citizens and the good people of Dr. Grabow who make all our wonderful pipes.

 

[mso489]

There are several earthquake reports online, The Charlotte Observer among others. The Sparta Food Lion had a lot of items knocked down and broken in the aisles, and there was some property damage to homes, but no injuries reported so far. I hope the heavier tools at the Dr. Grabow factory didn't get knocked around. That could take some time off the line to put back in order.

 

[atomic]

Sand Point, Alaska has been hit quite a bit this month, with the largest being a 7.8. Living here in California, I don't think much of 5 point scale tremors. For that part of the country however, that seems sort of significant - unless the news of tremors there just don't make a blip in our news reporting.

 

[alaskanpiper]

Sand Point, Alaska has been hit quite a bit this month, with the largest being a 7.8. Living here in California, I don't think much of 5 point scale tremors. For that part of the country however, that seems sort of significant - unless the news of tremors there just don't make a blip in our news reporting.

Those quakes were quite a bit south of Sand Point, like 70 miles. No biggie for AK folks. The 7.0 right under Anchorage in 2018 was the most notable quake we have had since 1964. All the ceiling tiles fell out at our office, computers destroyed, drywall cracked, highways and roads sliding down the hillsides, bridges damaged. It was pretty epic. Couldn't drink our well water for a month because it was all dirt.

No deaths or significant injuries though, which is a testament to the post 1964 engineering that has taken place as a result of lessons learned during the big one.

 

[georged]

No deaths or significant injuries though, which is a testament to the post 1964 engineering that has taken place as a result of lessons learned during the big one.

T'was a mere blip. A momentary inconvenience. A bit of a shake, is all.

1964 alaska earthquake - Google Search

 

[atomic]

Those quakes were quite a bit south of Sand Point, like 70 miles. No biggie for AK folks. The 7.0 right under Anchorage in 2018 was the most notable quake we have had since 1964. All the ceiling tiles fell out at our office, computers destroyed, drywall cracked, highways and roads sliding down the hillsides, bridges damaged. It was pretty epic. Couldn't drink our well water for a month because it was all dirt.

No deaths or significant injuries though, which is a testament to the post 1964 engineering that has taken place as a result of lessons learned during the big one.

I would begin to take anything above a 6 as worrisome. Good to know there was no significant damage and the 7.8 was taken as a blip for AK folks. For NC, a 5 may have some people having a tough time sleeping the next few days. I remember my first major earthquake, though I was in middle school.

 

[alaskanpiper]

T'was a mere blip. A momentary inconvenience. A bit of a shake, is all.

1964 alaska earthquake - Google Search

Haha, yeah. There were a few images from 2018 that rekindled the memory of the images from 64, but for the most part everyone was ok. A few structures condemned and some serious emergency road rehab was about the worst of it. The video below doesn't capture the intensity as well as indoor videos did, but it does show the thing most folks don't often think about during large earthquakes, which is all the electrical grid transformers blowing up across the city. Kind of cool, but spooky. You may have to click the link and view it on youtube, as it doesn't seem to want to play here, but it's worth a watch.

 

[alaskanpiper]

I would begin to take anything above a 6 as worrisome. Good to know there was no significant damage and the 7.8 was taken as a blip for AK folks. For NC, a 5 may have some people having a tough time sleeping the next few days. I remember my first major earthquake, though I was in middle school.

Yeah, if you're not used to it it can be quite spooky.

Haha, many Alaskans had a tough time sleeping for months in 2018! We had something like 2000 after shocks over the next few weeks, many of them 5.0+. It was SUPER annoying. My wife was 6 months pregnant at the time, and was freaking out, hahaha.

 

[mso489]

Compared to Alaska or California, the N.C. earthquake is not much, but it is the first in these parts in about 94 years. We're one of the states that keeps an eye out for hurricanes, and not just at the coast. It is worth noting that going way back in history, some of the largest North American quakes were in the midwest, but before there was much infrastructure and not too many people. Most of the evidence is geological and botanic. I think some of those compared to the worst in the west. The N.C. coast is still patching up from wind and floods this month.

 

[Richmond B. Funkenhouser]

Now you know their pipes won't smoke right..

 

[alaskanpiper]

Compared to Alaska or California, the N.C. earthquake is not much, but it is the first in these parts in about 94 years. We're one of the states that keeps an eye out for hurricanes, and not just at the coast. It is worth noting that going way back in history, some of the largest North American quakes were in the midwest, but before there was much infrastructure and not too many people. Most of the evidence is geological and botanic. I think some of those compared to the worst in the west. The N.C. coast is still patching up from wind and floods this month.

Hurricanes are among the things we are ecstatic to not experience in Alaska. That and tornados, poisonous (or any) snakes, poisonous spiders, scorpions, tics, etc. We have our share of bad weather to be sure, but Hurricane force winds are a rarity, thank God.

 

[sandollars]

Phhht... I don't even get out of bed for 5.1 earthquakes...

 

[olkofri]

Now you know their pipes won't smoke right..

They'll all be cracked and will burn out within 15 bowls.

 

[rushx9]

I had to go to Sparta yesterday shortly after it happened. Sparta is the halfway point between my home and where my ex-wife and my kids live, so it's where we meet to pick up/drop off the boys. It was kinda weird having to go there right after the 'quake. Was hoping to feel some aftershocks, but if there were any I didn't notice.

 

[mso489]

I've heard or read about some structural damage to homes and some grocery stock thrown around the aisles, but I haven't heard anything about Dr. Grabow at all, so I assume no news is good news, and they are probably back at the shop turning out those pipes as usual. If anything got off kilter, I suspect the crafts people can repair it themselves. I feel they are a special group, being what is apparently the largest remaining U.S. factory making briar pipes. If anyone produces higher volume, they must be exporting them.

Incidentally, the last biggest Midwestern earthquakes were at a town that no longer exists, New Madrid, Missouri, in 1811. There were a series on that fault, two or three about a year apart, if I recall.

 

[mso489]

Here's the earlier thread on this subject.

 

[anantaandroscoggin]

I remember the last big one here in Maine! Back in 2001 we had an earthquake about 2-3 miles down that measured as a 2.1 on the Richter scale (or was it 2.7?) Nothing fell down, but those big diagonal braces under the roof of the building I worked in rang out like somebody plucking the guitar strings between the bridge and where the strings are anchored with a pipe wrench.

 

[mso489]

Animals pick up on the vibrations before people do, if you have a dependable community of wildlife or domestic animals. Not that you could do much about it, but it might alert people to step outside. Or so I've heard. We slept through it, and so did our cats. No help from either species on this one. People in the capital did feel it, or some did and most didn't.

 

[magicbus]

as a follow up i received this response to an inquiry i sent about some pipes i sent off for repair:

" Yes, we received the pipes last week, but due to the earthquake we experienced on Aug. 9th we are currently non operational. I am not sure how long it is going to take for repairs, but we will not cash your check until we can repair your pipes."

i can only assume they got hit pretty hard, and i can't help but wonder what the future holds for this company.

 

[mso489]

magicbus, thank you very much for this follow-up. You would think news reports would have mentioned closing down a factory as property damage with economic effect, but local and regional journalism is so poor these days, it doesn't surprise me that this was not covered. I only suspect that Dr. Grabow owns its plant, but the cost of repairs and the lack of employment for some employees may cause some longer term damage. Dr. Grabow has to be one of the larger employers in Sparta, N.C., with a population of 1,775. It is, as near as I can tell, the largest maker of briar factory pipes in the U.S., unless there is another that exports most of its products. It certainly leads briar factory pipe sales in the U.S. by a U.S. maker, as near as I can tell. I hope for the best for them, and that this won't prompt them to export the jobs.