Last year, former Woodbridge Patch editor Lauren Jost and I were taking a break from our primary coverage to get a quick bite at Brixx at Potomac Town Center when there was a sudden loud rumbling.

We looked outside, expecting to see thunderclouds or smoke, and saw the plate glass windows in the restaurant began to shake and undulate in their frames. After a few more seconds, we realized, with a feeling of some relief, that it was an earthquake, and not a bomb.

A Brixx waitress who had just moved from Philadelphia anxiously asked us if Virginia was prone to earthquakes. We assured her that this was an unusual event. 

We ran across the street to Wegmans where we set up a temporary work space with our laptops and aircards. There we conducted video interviews with employees and customers who had been affected by the 5.8 magnitude earthquake.

One Wegmans employee said she had been stocking shelves when the earthquake happened. Items fell off the shelves, but she was not hurt.

More recently, a milder earthquake once again shook Mineral in March of this year.

If an earthquake ever strikes your area, here are some tips on what to do.

What do you remember about the earthquake? Not everyone felt it - did you?