Home Care In McLeansville, NC

Just after 2 a.m., a 2.0 earthquake was felt in Guilford County, with another just minutes later.

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MCLEANSVILLE, N.C. — Did you feel it?

The USGS reports a 2.0 earthquake hit near McLeansville just northeast of Greensboro at 2:19 a.m. Tuesday.

Some WFMY News 2 viewers already have reported feeling it in the middle of the night.

Although considered a small earthquake, it was a literal wake-up call for Shareese Bryant and her family. She among other residents had no idea what they initially heard.

"My little one slept through it, but my oldest, she's a teenager, so we both got up. We were in the hallway. We were trying to figure out what it was. She was terrified. I was terrified and we kind of stayed up until four or five this morning. After we heard it was an earthquake, I kinda calmed down. If that was a 2.0, I wouldn't want to experience anything stronger than that," Bryant said.

This was both Bryant's and fellow McLeansville resident, Matthew Ball's, first earthquake experience.

"It was like when I heard a kaboom. I thought the world was kind of shaking a bit and it like just completely woke me up real fast. My eyes popped; it kind of traumatized me a little bit. I was just making sure my brother and mom [are ok]. I don't know if she heard anything," Bell said.

"I woke up to this loud bang," Bryant said. "It sounded like an explosion almost, and it kind of rattled the house a little bit. So, I sat up and I was talking to my oldest daughter. I was like 'What was that?' The first thing I thought was that a car fell off the bridge. I don't know, just waking up but, the Urban Loop is right here. So I thought a car fell off the bridge. I'm like that's too far for us to feel that and then a few minutes later, it had happened again and I was like yeah, something's happening. It made me Google like, 'What do you do in an earthquake?' and I you know, literally read if you're in the bed, stay in the bed, put a pillow over your head, so that was like new for me to even do research on."

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The precise location looks to be close to Huffine Mill Road and I-840, otherwise known as the Urban Loop.

How strong was it? Typically a 2.0 earthquake is strong enough to be felt, but not strong enough to cause any harm or damage to the area. At this time, we haven't received any reports of that.

Three minutes later at 2:22 a.m., another earthquake hit just a few miles west between East Wendover and Huffine Mill Rd. This appears to be a secondary quake of just about the same strength, a 2.1.

Earthquakes aren't common in North Carolina, but they do happen. Weak earthquakes like this happen a handful of times each year. Stronger ones are less common. You might remember the very strong Sparta Earthquake of 2020 which registered a 5.1 and did plenty of damage in Alleghany County.

WFMY News 2 has not received any reports of injuries or property damage.

"I just hope that all the people in McLeansville are safe and sound and just as long as everybody’s OK and nobody was hurt or anything, that’s the main thing," said Bell.

Did you feel the earthquake Tuesday morning? If so, you can report it to the USGS. Here's how.

Follow this link and click on the "Did you feel it" tab. Submitting a report helps validate the earthquake information.

Two shallow earthquakes were reported overnight around Greensboro, North Carolina, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The first, a 2.3 earthquake, occurred around 2:19 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 15, and was centered 1.8 miles west of McLeansville, just east of Greensboro. It emerged from a depth of 328 feet deep.

The second, a 2.2 earthquake, was recorded around 2:22 a.m. and was centered about 3 miles northeast of Greensboro, officials say. It recorded from a depth of 656 feet down, data shows.

More than 40 witness reports have been filed, with people reporting “weak” to “light” shaking was felt nearly 100 miles away. Among the reports was one person who felt light shaking 336 miles north in Wilmington, Delaware, official say.

Earthquakes typically aren’t felt until they exceed 2.5 magnitude, experts say. That’s also the point at which minor damage can start to occur.

The mountains and foothills of North Carolina are not on an active tectonic plate boundary — where earthquakes are common — but the region has sporadic minor quakes linked to old fault lines, geologists say.

It is also possible for earthquakes to trigger more quakes, according to the Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences at Appalachian State University.

“In areas with lots of old faults, like the Appalachians, we tend to get earthquakes along pre-existing fault zones that have weakened rock at depth,” the department wrote in a report on Earthquakes in the N.C. High Country.

“Even though the southern Appalachians are not currently at an active plate boundary, our tectonic history means that built-up stresses from time to time are able to be released along old faults from the building of the Appalachians, which happened hundreds of millions of years ago.”

Earthquakes’ sudden, rapid shaking can cause fires, tsunamis, landslides or avalanches. They can happen anywhere, but they’re most common in Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Puerto Rico and Washington, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

If an earthquake strikes, it’s best to protect yourself right away. Here are tips from experts:

The best way to protect yourself during an earthquake is to drop, cover and hold on, officials say. “Wherever you are, drop down to your hands and knees and hold onto something sturdy,” officials say.

“If you’re using a wheelchair or walker with a seat, make sure your wheels are locked and remain seated until the shaking stops.”

Be sure to cover your head and neck with your arms, and crawl under a sturdy table if possible. If no shelter is available, crawl to an interior wall away from windows.

Once under a table, officials say you should hold on with one hand and be ready to move with it.

“There can be serious hazards after an earthquake, such as damage to the building, leaking gas and water lines, or downed power lines,” officials say. “Expect aftershocks to follow the main shock of an earthquake. Be ready to Drop, Cover, and Hold On if you feel an aftershock.”

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This story was originally published August 15, 2023, 7:52 AM.

A lockdown was issued Tuesday afternoon, and K9 officers searched the area. The sheriff's office said no gun was found.

Credit: WFMY

MCLEANSVILLE, N.C. —

Guilford County deputies identified a juvenile suspect related to a situation that led to the lockdown of Northeast Middle and Northeast High School in McLeansville on Tuesday, according to a news release from the Sheriff's Office.

Investigators said deputies responded to Northeast High School around 3 p.m. on a report of a weapon on campus and put both schools into lockdown per safety protocols.

Guilford County Schools said all students and staff are safe and no gun was found. According to the news release, because the individual involved was a juvenile, the Sheriff's Office was unable to release any further information.

The lockdown delayed dismissal for students at both schools. Students were alerted over intercom and K9 officers searched the area.

Again, no gun was found, the sheriff's office said.

Guilford County Schools released this statement to WMFY News 2:

"Northeast Middle and Northeast High delayed dismissals while law enforcement completed an investigation in the area. Out of an abundance of caution, both schools were placed on lockdown. All students and staff are safe. Buses will be delayed slightly as we complete the last of our safety precautions. We want to thank everyone involved, especially our law enforcement partners, for keeping our students safe. And we also want to thank our parents for their patience as we followed the proper safety procedures."

Stay with WFMY News 2 for updates.

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As remote and hybrid work persist beyond the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic, it appears that one of the Triad’s largest public companies is still feeling those effects on commercial real estate. Commuters on I-40 have noted that a major employer’s signage has been removed from a prominent office building.

Labcorp (NYSE: LH), the Burlington-based leading global life science company, has vacated its three-floor, 176,778-square-foot office building at 5450 Millstream Road in McLeansville. Both Labcorp and APG Capital, the Raleigh-based real estate firm that owns the building, confirmed the vacancy to TBJ.

"Labcorp employees previously located at the McLeansville, N.C. office facility have transitioned to remote or hybrid work arrangements or to office space in our downtown Burlington location,” a Labcorp spokesperson said.

At a time when many companies are reassessing their commercial real estate needs due to remote and hybrid work, Labcorp vacated the building by early November last year.

“They just didn’t have enough people who wanted to return to work in the building,” said Jim Anthony, CEO and founder of APG Capital.

“The total square footage they vacated across their markets here in North Carolina was about 650,000 square feet,” Anthony said.

This includes space in Greensboro, Burlington, Research Triangle Park and Durham, he said. Labcorp declined to comment on other buildings they may have recently vacated.

“We do not disclose details of confidential contracts,” a Labcorp spokesperson said. “We routinely assess the best options for employees across all of our sites that will allow us to best serve our customers and, while we no longer physically occupy the facility in McLeansville, all employees were retained through the transition.”

On March 17, a month after TBJ initially reported on Labcorp's exit of the McLeansville building, the company told TBJ it has vacated just over 300,000 square feet statewide since Covid-19.

Labcorp had been a tenant of the McLeansville building since 2015. In July 2017, the life sciences company signed a direct lease through November 2023. TBJ previously reported that Labcorp had about 1,000 employees in the building, and Anthony told TBJ that Labcorp used the building for its account payable and call center departments.

Built in 2004 on 20.8 acres of land, the building had been occupied by Citigroup as a call center until 2014.

APG Capital purchased the building in March 2022 for $17 million from LNR Property Corp.

Labcorp had renovated the building in 2020, Anthony said, with renovations beginning prior to the onset of the pandemic. With two back-up generators, a full cafeteria and a full fitness center, ten conference rooms, gated outdoor patio and seating, state-of-the-art security system and two break rooms and four bathrooms per floor, Anthony called it “one of the most heavily equipped office buildings in this part of North Carolina and probably the whole state.”

Anthony said that there has been interest in the building, although he was unable to discuss further details. Labcorp is continuing to pay out the rest of its lease.

“I doubt whether we’re going to get someone in the building before the end of the lease, but it could happen,” he said. “There’s only a few months left.”

To date, the office building has only been used for single tenants, but Anthony said it could be converted into a multi-tenant building.