Pennsylvania Earthquake, Fire Kills 7

Pulitzer Prize winning reporter, Pennsylvania resident & Twitter tweeter, Jim MacMillan reported an earthquake to his Twitter network Dec. 27, 2008, just after midnight. MacMillan thought that the area hardest hit by the quake appeared to be an area he referred to as the "Pennsylvania Dutch country" .

Also reported was a house fire that claimed the lives of 7 Pennsylvania residents. It's not yet known if the fire is related to the quake but the New York Times has reported that 4 adults & 3 children were found in the basement of the building. Firefighters reported that the building was not equipped with smoke detectors and that the group died huddled together in the corner.

It's one of those events where you wish you had a do-over, so you could go to their home with the necessary supplies, install the proper safety devises to ensure the safe evacuation of everyone. My deepest sympathy goes out to the 4 survivors and their families.

Update: Early morning reports indicate that Three Mile Island was effected by the Pennsylvania quake. According to follow up reports the fire which claim 7 lives appears to be unrelated.

Jim MacMillan's personal account: Just F8 and Be There, But Faster