AREA — The state of New Jersey was rocked by a 4.8 magnitude earthquake on Friday that triggered multiple aftershocks and caused minor structural damage throughout the region.

Representatives from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), a government agency that spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology and hydrology, said Friday’s quake was the third largest to be recorded in the area in the last five decades and the strongest to hit New Jersey in more than a century.

Almost a dozen aftershocks, ranging in magnitude from 1.8 to 4.0, were registered in Somerset and Hunterdon Counties on Friday. According to the USGS, that number continued to climb over the weekend, finally topping out at 43.

One particularly strong aftershock — a 3.8 that emanated from Gladstone shortly before 6 p.m. Friday — was felt by people as far north as Connecticut and Massachusetts, as far south as Maryland and as far east as eastern Long Island, N.Y.

Local first responders and government agencies were quickly inundated with calls after the first quake hit on Friday morning.

“According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the quake may have been felt by more than 42 million people across several states,” Westfield Mayor Shelley Brindle said via social media. “We are grateful to have no reports of injuries or damage here in Westfield, and the town is in the process of checking its infrastructure out of an abundance of caution. Similarly, it’s advisable to check your home foundation and walls for cracks and damage.”

Mayor Brindle went on to note that the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities has been in contact with the state’s electric- and gas-distribution companies, none of whom have reported any impact or damage to the grid.