> : Earthquake Severity
> :
> : Richter Earthquake
> : Magnitudes Effects
> :
> : Less than 3.5 Generally not felt, but recorded.
> :
> : 3.5-5.4 Often felt, but rarely causes damage.
> :
> : Under 6.0 At most slight damage to well-designed buildings.
> : Can cause major damage to poorly constructed
buildings
> : over small regions.
> etc.
Living in a very active seismic region (we had a 6.8 magnitude quake
back in 2001, and we have a very large active volcano not far away),
I'd say that a 4.8 quake would not cause significant widespread
damage.