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Monday Marks 10th Anniversary Of 2011 Earthquake

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Ten years ago today, the Earth moved and grabbed the attention of millions of people in Maryland and the Mid-Atlantic. A rare 5.8 magnitude earthquake shook Maryland on Aug. 23, 2011.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake was half a mile deep. Shaking was felt at the White House and all over the East Coast, as far south as Chapel Hill, N.C. People also felt it in New York and Rhode Island.

Many people who fled downtown high-rises were trying to reach friends and family by cell phone, but service at the time was interrupted.

After the fact, hundreds of people stayed outside on the sidewalks in downtown Baltimore, not wanting to return to their high-rise buildings.

The quake was centered near Louisa, Va., in Louisa County, which is northwest of Richmond and south of Washington.

The quake was the East Coast's largest since 1944.

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