Nat Hickey has seen it all in Freeport -- except perhaps an earthquake.
"In 88 years, I've never even known of one in the area," Hickey said.
But one may very well have shaken Freeport and the surrounding area on Tuesday. At around 4:15 in the afternoon, the city manager felt something.
"All industry is safe, so you're thinking it's an earthquake; it makes you think it was. I never have been in an earthquake, but I know what the ground felt like," said Freeport City Manager Jeff Pyne.
The shaking lasted just a few moments, but enough to cause phones to ring throughout the area. The Freeport Fire Department checked with local plants to make sure there were incidents.
"We called all of our contacts to make sure everything was OK. The best guess is something happened, but nobody knows what," said Freeport Fire Chief Brian Davis.
Eyewitness News checked with the National Earthquake Information Center, which says it didn't record any seismic activity in the area. But that doesn't mean there wasn't an earthquake. It's gotten residents talking. And for 88-year-old Nat Hickey, it might finally be something he's never experienced.
"I'm not really aware of any... gee, any earthquake in this area would be real unusual to me," said Hickey.
Did you feel the ground shake in or near Freeport on Tuesday? If so, we want to hear about it. Join the conversation by going to our Facebook page, click the 'Like' button and leave your comments.
