The Eastern Ontario region has a history of earthquakes . Several faults run through the region , and the area is near both the Western Quebec Seismic Zone and the Saint Lawrence rift system . Minor earthquakes occur in the region regularly , most of them too weak to be felt by people . More severe earthquakes , around 5 – 6 on the Richter magnitude scale , occur every sixty years , on average . The most recent of the earthquakes occurred in 2010 . This earthquake , known as the 2010 Central Canada earthquake although it caused some power outages and minor damage to older buildings , did not cause significant damage because buildings in the area are required to be earthquake resistant by government regulations . The earthquake caused significant panic amongst the population , though : office buildings were evacuated in Ottawa , transit routes shut down , and in the minutes after the quake , cell phone service was down , as it was overloaded with calls made by panicked people attempting to talk to friends and relatives . Although the reaction was ridiculed by many , if buildings in the area were not designed to be earthquake-resistant , it would have caused significant damage . A similar earthquake in 1944 caused significant damage to buildings in Cornwall , as it was before earthquake-resistant architecture became common
similar earthquake in 1944
1944 Cornwall–Massena earthquake
Eastern Ontario