Minor Quake Hits Off Florida Coast

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- A small earthquake struck about 100 miles off Daytona Beach, Florida, in the Atlantic Ocean.

The U.S. Geological Survey says the magnitude 3.7 earthquake struck at about 4 p.m. Saturday. There are no reports of damage or that it was felt on land.

Earthquakes in Florida are rare and those that cause damage are almost nonexistent. According to the USGS, two earthquakes that struck 10 minutes apart in January 1879 knocked plaster from walls in St. Augustine and were felt as far away as Tampa on the Gulf coast.

Earthquakes of less than magnitude 5.4 rarely cause damage. The USGS says there are about 930,000 such quakes recorded worldwide each year or about 2,500 per day.

(KA)