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A 5.9 magnitude earthquake centered northwest of Richmond, Va., shook much of Washington, D.C., and was felt as far north as New York City and Rhode Island.

The quake sent hundreds of people spilling into the street a block from the White House, with other buildings evacuated in North Carolina and tremors felt as far away as New York City.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake was 3.7 miles deep. Shaking was felt at the White House and all over the East Coast, as far south as Charlotte, N.C. Parts of the Pentagon, White House and Capitol were evacuated.

The quake struck at 1:51 p.m. and was centered 87 miles southwest of the nation's capital in Mineral, Va., in Louisa County.

Seven nuclear plants on the East Coast declared unusual events, according to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The declaration is the least serious of four emergency notifications established by the federal commission.

Jim Steets, a spokesman for Entergy, the company that owns the Indian Point nuclear plant 50 miles north of New York City, reported "no issues" there after the quake.

The quake sent office workers in downtown Washington, unaccustomed to earthquakes, fleeing their buildings--but uncertain what to do.

Farragut Square, a couple of blocks from the White House, was packed. But other workers stood on the sidewalks outside their buildings, many trying unsuccessfully to get their cellphones to work.

"We are wondering where to go, standing in the street like it's a fire drill," said Naomi Karp of AARP Public Policy Institute in downtown Washington. After half an hour of so, workers began returning to some buildings.

Buildings in New York City shook briefly. Government buildings in the city, including City Hall, were evacuated. The 26-story federal courthouse in lower Manhattan began swaying and hundreds of people were seen leaving the building. Court officers weren't letting people back in.

The control towers at Kennedy International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport were evacuated as a precaution and flights grounded to a halt, according to a spokesman from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

No problems were reported from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which runs the city's subways.

Employees at the Starrett-Lehigh building at West 26th Street, home of Martha Stewart's empire, were evacuated as the floor "shook horribly," according to an employee. On the sixth floor of 1065 Avenue of the Americas, pendant lights were swinging.

Exchanges' trading operations were unaffected by the earthquake according to officials.

Representatives for NYSE Euronext and Nasdaq OMX Group said that trading in securities and stock options continued unabated following the earthquake. The New York Stock Exchange's downtown New York trading floor was not evacuated, nor was Nasdaq's Philadelphia options-trading floor.

DJIA pared some gains after earthquake hit, but was recently back up 226 points.

The earthquake sent vibrations throughout New Jersey. State government workers in Trenton who at first thought strong winds had kicked up almost immediately realized they were feeling a tremor of an intensity that is rare in the Garden State.

New Jersey state police acting Lieutenant Stephen Jones said there were no immediate reports of any serious injuries in New Jersey.

In North Carolina, the tremors sent light bulbs shaking in their fixtures, and brought people out into the street looking for a potential cause.

Karen Schaefer was stopped at a traffic light in northern Raleigh when her 1995 Honda Accord began shaking. "It felt like when you are sitting on a suspension bridge and you feel it swaying," she said. "But I knew I wasn't on a suspension bridge. I was like, 'is this an earthquake?' and I said, 'No, this is Raleigh, N.C.'?"

Shock waves were also felt in Ohio, where office buildings swayed in Columbus and Cincinnati and the press box at the Cleveland Indians' Progressive Field shook.

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