New tech catches ‘Moodus noises' in the act as area feels 2.3 magnitude earthquake

The Moodus section of East Haddam experienced a magnitude 2.3 earthquake Wednesday night, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

It was about two kilometers away from the center of Moodus and about 2.5 kilometers in depth.

While Connecticut has seen its fair share of noticeable earthquakes so far this year, for many in Moodus and East Haddam, they are just a part of town history.

“Within seconds of the Moodus noises last night, our community forums blew up with people sharing their common experiences as a community,” said Melanie Kolek, who lives in the Moodus section of East Haddam.

Her family has lived in town for 82 years, and she, other than college, has been a lifelong resident.

She is no stranger to the shaking, small earthquakes known locally as the “Moodus noises.” They are an unique staple in town.

“I remember being in eighth grade sitting in English class and feeling it quite severely,” Kolek said.

Her most recent run in with the rumbles came Wednesday night as she sat down to watch UConn basketball. This one, registering as a magnitude 2.3 with the USGS.

“I knew almost instantly it was the Moodus noises because my two dogs came running inside,” she said.

You go to the experts in town, they’ll tell you they are nothing to worry about.

“Lots of folklore rose up about it,” Karl Stofko, East Haddam’s municipal historian, said.

He’s the man residents said to ask about the noises. He said stories of the noises go all the way back in town history. Most people living here are no strangers to the bangs.

“We get them cyclic, periodically, every so many years and they will be around for a while and then they will disappear,” Stofko said.

But, crawl below the Historical Society Museum and you'll see a new piece of tech, allowing the town and scientists to measure the noises.

“We thought it would be a great addition to the museum here,” John Bielot, the treasurer for the East Haddam Historical Society, said.

About a month ago, in partnership with Yale University, the historical society installed a “Raspberry Shake,” a computer to measure seismographic data. It sits on the ground in the basement of the Historical Society Museum and is about the size of an external hard drive.

This earthquake was its first local test. It’s a snapshot of the “noises,” again proving they are more than just legend.

“It’s just cool that the legends that were formed around them,” Bielot said. “That all carried through to modern day.”

While scientists parse through and work with the data collected, for those living in town, it's another showcase of what makes the river town unique.

“It’s engrained in who we are in our little community,” Kolek said.