Aftershock felt at 12:40PM Wednesday

A magnitude 3.0 aftershock rumbled southwest of Mineral mid-day Wednesday, the fifth largest and the 41st aftershock since the initial magnitude 5.8 earthquake on August 23, 2011. Today's aftershock occurred at 12:40 PM Wednesday, October 12. The US Geological Survey reports this aftershock was a magnitude 3.0, located six miles southwest of Mineral, Virginia. This is in the same general area as the majority of the aftershocks have been clustered. Here is a map of the aftershock's location, with the distance measured relative to downtown Richmond:

Louisa County Middle School briefly evacuated when the aftershock occurred.

As mentioned, today's aftershock is the fifth largest since the initial 5.8 earthquake. Here's the list of strongest aftershocks:

4.5 at 1:07 AM August 25
4.2 at 8:04 PM August 23
3.4 at 12:45 PM August 23
3.4 at 5:09 AM September 1
3.0 at 12:40 PM October 12

Stay with CBS 6, we'll keep you updated.
--Meteorologist Carrie Rose

Fall Colors Update

Fall Foliage Update

Fall colors are starting to show in the mountains of western Virginia, and we appear to be right on track for an average peak color season. Here's the map of when average peak colors occur in Virginia (generally speaking, the farther west or higher in elevation you are, the earlier in the season the colors peak):

But if you're planning to head west for the weekend, here's the latest Fall Foliage Report on how the colors are progressing in that part of our region:

There are some trees in central Virginia, though, that are already changing colors. I've noticed those trees that are showing color here are often trees that were damaged during Hurricane Irene. This is typical behavior for distressed trees to change color and drop their leaves a little early. By doing so, it can save the life of a tree that suffered trauma during the Spring and Summer months. During droughts, trees will behave similarly.

You can learn more about Fall in Virginia from the Department of Forestry by clicking here.

Enjoy the great leaf-peeping weather over the next week!