New Madrid Sees 2 Quakes Sunday, One Directly Under I-55

If you follow the activity of the New Madrid Seismic Zone, you're certainly not surprised when you see an earthquake in the Missouri boot heel region. However, you might be surprised to know that there were two tremors Sunday morning and one was directly under Interstate 55.

The past week has been relatively quiet along the New Madrid Fault, but I noticed there were suddenly two quakes the USGS confirmed Sunday morning, September 27, 2026.

That doesn't become interesting until you zoom into the northern most quake which happened directly under I-55 north of New Madrid, Missouri.

This was the approximate street view of where one of these quakes was located

Neither of these quakes was significant. The quake directly under I-55 was only a 1.9 magnitude quake according to the USGS. The one on the Tennessee side of the Mississippi River was only a 2.0 magnitude quake. No one has reported to the USGS that they felt either quake which is not surprising. To me, the I-55 quake was just a reminder of how a future major quake would almost certainly disrupt travel in and around southern Missouri for a significant amount of time. You could expect weeks if not months of delay before overpasses and bridges would be able to be checked for safety especially if repairs are necessary.

I get mocked all the time for constantly suggesting earthquake preparedness and that's fine. That's human nature (sadly). But, I'd much rather be the person who's encouraging having an emergency earthquake plan and never need it than the other way around. Let's hope that the New Madrid Fault keeps churning out these tiny and sometimes interesting quakes and never ruins our life with a major shift in the near future.