What would cause a boom loud enough to shake your house?

[KyraS]

The weirdest thing happened last night. DH and I had just gone to bed and there was a boom. The first one was enough for us to wonder what in the world it was but we thought maybe a wreck since we live close to a major HWY.

Well about 15 minutes later there was a boom so loud it shook our entire house. We got up, went outside and saw nothing. This was about midnight. Our neighbor walked over and there were other lights on all over the street so the entire neighborhood heard it. Nothing ever happened we didn't see anything or hear sirens or anything.

I called DH a little while ago and asked if he ever found out what it was and he said no but that a co-worker who lives about 2 miles away had heard it and that he and his teenage son had gotten out and ridden the neighborhoods and hadn't seen anything.

So what could cause something that loud? It shook the entire house and was heard for miles around. I thought a Sonic Boom? I have no idea actually.

 

[KelNottAt]

Are you near an Air Force or Naval base? Possible sonic boom?

Construction blast to demolish underground rock?

Just brainstorming.

 

[NMAmy]

Are you near an Air Force or Naval base? Possible sonic boom?

That was my thought. I used to live on an Army post which shot missiles and the air force base was nearby. Several times a week, we'd have a sonic boom.

 

[ADisneygirl]

Possibilities:
sonic boom from aircraft
terrible crash on highway near you
construction gone wrong
demolition

I know that the space shuttle taking off here in Florida causes a boom that can be heard and sort of felt across the state.

 

[KyraS]

Nope we aren't near any military bases. We have an airport but it's not a busy airport. We have small Airlink Planes that run about four times a day but nothing that late.

If it had been a wreck we would have known by now. Our town is small and news travels fast. No construction that I know of anywhere near us and especially not at midnight.

I'm really thinking Sonic Boom just wondering why.

 

[OrlandoMike]

You dont need to be near an airport to hear the sonic booms. When the shuttle lands it literally shakes everything at Disney, and thats 60 miles away.

 

[Pam]

Last November this happened at my house, the windows literally rattled - turns out there was a gas explosion in a town about 20 miles west of us - it flattened a house completely and did some major damage to many other homes.

 

[Keli]

Once my dh was trying to start a fire in the back (long story) and he couldn't get it to ignite. He finally pours some accelerant on it (not sure what) and lights it. I was standing in the kitchen, which faces the back of the house, and I FELT the giant boom and it shook our whole house.
I ran to the window to see dh running away from his fire, LOL.
He's never lived this story down and hates it when I tell it to our friends, lol.

 

[kaybracon]

A few years ago we had something similar happen here - a loud boom and the house shook. It repeated about 30 minutes later. One of the plastic covers on our bathroom vents fell off and broke.

We saw on the news the next day that there had been a couple of 2.x earthquakes recorded in our area at those times.

ETA: Oklahoma

 

[schmitty]

Transformer blew probably.

 

[lulugirl]

Did you guys eat Mexican for dinner?

 

[wdwmom2]

Do you live near me exDH?? A few years ago he wanted to burn some brush so he poured 5 gallons of gasoline on it. Homes 1 1/2 miles away felt the earth shake !!!!!!!!

 

[KirstenB]

A few years ago we had something similar happen here - a loud boom and the house shook. It repeated about 30 minutes later. One of the plastic covers on our bathroom vents fell off and broke.

We saw on the news the next day that there had been a couple of 2.x earthquakes recorded in our area at those times.

Same exact thing here. We live about 10 miles from the epicenter, which in our case was Columbia, VA. I didn't even know Virginia could have an earthquake!! I've lived here 27 years, and it was the first one I'd heard of.

 

[Spidey7]

sounds like a jet sonic boom or thunder.

 

[DISUNC]

Did you guys eat Mexican for dinner?

 

[pbharris4]

Same exact thing here. We live about 10 miles from the epicenter, which in our case was Columbia, VA. I didn't even know Virginia could have an earthquake!! I've lived here 27 years, and it was the first one I'd heard of.

I remember that. I felt it up here in Fredericksburg.

I have heard very loud booms from either Ft. AP Hill or Quantico. There have also been sonic booms when there was an Air Show in Andrews AF Base (1.5 hrs away), but they warn the public ahead of time. Maybe it was a transformer.

 

[KyraS]

I don't think it could have been a transformer. There is one right next door and it has blown before. While it's loud it's not nearly that loud.

I'm wondering about the earthquake. Going to do a little googleing and see. I'm still leaning towards Sonic Boom although we do have two pipe line companies in town but again I think we would have heard if something had exploded there.

 

[Spidey7]

We also do not live anywhere near close to an AFB that has fighter jets, but we still occasionally have one fly over and produce a sonic boom, so it could have just been a plane on an unusual route due to weather or something.

 

[ducklite]

Are you anywhere near San Jose CA? They had an earthquake last night.

 

[MELSMICE]

Are you anywhere near San Jose CA? They had an earthquake last night.

That's what I was wondering also.