The Dec. 20 event was the 19th earthquake recorded in Alabama in 2017, in what it turns out was a fairly average year for Alabama quakes, featuring many small-magnitude events.

The star on the map west of Decatur indicates the location of the earthquake. (USGS map) A small earthquake more than three miles below the earth's surface in north Alabama was detected Friday by ...

Looking at the entire state of Alabama, there have been a good amount of earthquakes from 1950 to the present. There have been a total of 163 2.5 or greater magnitude earthquakes.

Still, earthquakes are not uncommon in Alabama. Since 1886, more than 400 earthquakes have been recorded in the state. Typically earthquakes only with a magnitude of 3.0 or higher can be felt.

In the NBC mini-series "10.5," a catastrophic quake is wiping the State of California off the face of the map. Could anything like that happen in Alabama?