Submitted by: J. Rulon Nelson
Ferron, Utah
August 1988

Location at time of earthquake: Resting on bed in Ferron, Utah

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Sun. Aug 14. My wife was in church. I was not feeling well, so I was taking a rest on my bed. About 2 p.m., suddenly the bed was shaking me. I was lying in an east and west position and I was moving about 14 to 16 inches back and forth in an east and west motion. This violent motion frightened me, so I sprang out of bed. The roar was terrible. I ran to the back door where I saw our son standing facing west. He said to me, "The carport was moving from east to west and that big poplar tree was waving east and west."

The mountains north and west of town had big long streaks caused by falling rocks. The clouds of dust were high in the air, north and southwest of the Mill Site Dam in the canyon west of Ferron.

Summary of phone response to Utah Geological Survey call for personal accounts (article published in The Emery County Progress newspaper) of the 1988 San Rafael Swell earthquake

Submitted by: Mr. and Mrs. Felix Baca
Sunnyside, Utah
August 1988

Location at time of earthquake: Sunnyside, Utah

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They were in their home in Sunnyside, Utah, when they felt the earthquake. They saw their stove move, and heard a big noise. When they went to their front door they saw dust up in the mountains near Columbia. Didn't see any actual rocks falling.

Letter written in response to 1995 article in The Emery County Progress newspaper asking for personal accounts of the 1988 San Rafael Swell earthquake.

Submitted by: Virginia and Gene Talbot
Ferron, Utah
November 1995

Location at time of earthquake: Ferron, Utah

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Heard a noise like an airplane very very loud or a train going thru the area. Immediately I called to my husband Gene--"Earthquake. Get in a door way." (I used to live in California).

Next, when it quit, I called to get the camera and turn off the gas. We did. We took pictures within 5 minutes of the earthquake, looking towards the mountains west, north and south (where we could see dust clouds caused by rock falls). The picture we did not get was the desert east of Ferron which was a solid haze of dust. This was the epicenter area, Saddle Horse Canyon.

We had friends 4-wheeling right in the epicenter. We went to their house, turned off their gas and waited to talk to them later. They said they were afraid the rock tumble might make it impossible to get out, however, they did get back safely.

Gene is a silversmith. He had noticed before the quake, silver balls rolling on his work bench. Several days before as we talked in the kitchen area, a decorative plate started rolling off its easel and crashed to the floor.

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