A magnitude 2.7 earthquake centered about 3 miles SSE of Fenton MO shook parts of St Louis early this morning.  The quake had a depth of abuot 12 miles, and rattled the area 6:24 AM.  

 This quake was not directly related to the recent April 18 magnitude 5.4 earthquake in the Wabash Valley, nor to the New Madrid Seismic Zone. It is associated with a series of smaller NW trending faults including the Eureka-House Springs structure, that have historically had small earthquakes along them.  The last earthquakes felt in St Louis from this zone were in 1998 and in 1978.

 See the USGS or St. Louis University Earthquake Center for updated information.  The quake shook areas recently saturated by flood waters, so the potential for liquefaction of loose and sandy soils needs to be considered.