PR pros share their stories about Tuesday’s quake

Thing is there isn’t a train near her office, and she’s on the fifth floor. As the shaking grew stronger, Sena realized it was an earthquake and ran to a nearby door frame.

“It’s more than a little disconcerting when the floor starts shaking underneath your feet,” the senior consultant told sister site PRDaily.com in an email.

The experience Sena described was the result of the 5.9-magnitude earthquake that struck near Mineral, Va., 87 miles south of Washington, D.C., at 1:51 p.m. Eastern time. It shook cities and towns across the East Coast.

Colleen Campbell, a vice president in Ogilvy PR’s D.C. office, said she was in a meeting when the quake started.

“The floor felt like it was bouncing more than shaking,” she said. “Lights swayed and people quickly began leaving our offices on the ninth and 10th floors. As I walked down the hallway, I saw several people standing in doorways and a few had ducked under their desks.”

No one at Campbell or Sena’s offices was injured, nor was there any property damage. All told, there were minimal reports of property damage due to the quake, according to The Washington Post.