NEW YORK — A 1.7 magnitude earthquake that struck New York early Tuesday may have caused a series of small explosions on an island between Manhattan and Queens, officials said.
The US Geological Survey reported that the earthquake occurred at 5:45 a.m. near the Astoria section of Queens. There were no reports of injuries or structural damage and no impacts to public transportation, traffic or utilities, said Aries Dela Cruz, spokesperson for the New York City Office of Emergency Management.
Some residents of Manhattan and Queens reported what appeared to be small explosions shortly before 6 a.m. coming from Roosevelt Island, a 2-mile (3.2-kilometer) strip of land in the East River between the two boroughs.
Allan Drury, a spokesman for Consolidated Edison, said utility officials suspect the earthquake caused the explosions since they occurred around the same time.
Drury said there were no power outages.
The New York City earthquake occurred a few hours after a magnitude 2.3 earthquake was reported in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC. No injuries or damage were reported after the previous earthquake.