NPR 2011-08-24

 Damage assessment 1 is under way in the areas across the Northeastern US that were unexpectedly shaken by a magnitude 5.8 earthquake. Washington DC resident Litz Rauh says she was rattled 2 as much as the buildings.

 
"So shaking, yeah, everything moved, and I don't know. We all thought it was something else. We thought it was just our building, in particular. Rather it's definitely everything else."
 
Areas from New York down to Virginia where it was centered felt the earthquake certainly in Philadelphia as well, where NPR's Jeff Brady says that City Hall was evacuated 3 for a short time.
 
So far, no reports of major damage in Philadelphia, but some businesses and government offices closed early and sent shaken workers home. In the Germantown Section of Philadelphia, Joel Echo was on a ladder painting a window frame.
 
"You know, I really just felt like someone just kind of bumped into my ladders. It's just kind of a jolt 4 all of a sudden, enough to kinda make me tighten 5 my grip and say ‘wow' and look down, but it was over in a split second."
 
Local utilities are reporting no significant damage. The quake triggered an early rush hour as workers tried to leave Center City to go home early. Jeff Brady, NPR News, Philadelphia.
 
Don Blakeman of the US Geological Survey says prepare for aftershocks.
 
"It's unlikely that will have a bigger, you know, something greater than this 5 magnitude. There's still some possibility, but it's unlikely. So we'll probably have a few quakes in the magnitude 4.5 range, I would guess, and then quite a fewer, you know, smaller."
 
The Associated Press is reporting minor 6 injuries. Flights were delayed at airports in the DC area, New York and Philadelphia. Amtrak is operating at reduced speeds. In the nation's capital, monuments were closed and evacuated. Some damage was reported at the National Cathedral. 
 
In Libya, rebels are celebrating, firing into the air after seizing control of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's main military compound in the capital. The State Department says that Gaddafi's regime has nearly collapsed 7. NPR's Michele Kelemen reports US diplomats 8 are ramping 9 up their post-Gaddafi planning and trying to free up money for the rebel government in Libya.
 
State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland says the US is working urgently to try to release 1 to 1.5 billion dollars in frozen Libyan assets to the Transitional National Council (TNC).
 
"We want to give this money back to the TNC for its use, first and foremost to meet humanitarian 10 needs and to help it establish a secure, stable government and to move on to the next step in its own road map."
 
And she says she hopes that will happen soon once the UN Sanctions Committee clears the way. Michele Kelemen, NPR News, Washington.
 
Big surge on Wall Street today. Before the close, the Dow was up more than 300 points, nearly 3%, at 11,177. 
 
This is NPR News.
 
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation says bank loans are up in the second quarter of the year for the first time in three years. NPR's Paul Brown reports there are other good, post-recession signs for the banking 11 industry plus some warning signals.
 
FDIC Acting 12 Chairman Martin Gruenberg says the increase in lending is a good sign, though he sees it as just a start.
 
"Lending activity still has a long way to go before it approaches more normal levels."
 
Gruenberg also says the number of 'problem' banks is down for the first time since early 2006, and bank failures are down.
 
"These trends are obviously favorable, but the current levels of both failures and 'problem' institutions remain very high by historical standards."
 
Finally, Gruenberg says bank profits have been improving partly because of a lower number of bad loans, but he says that's not enough. He says banks need to lend more if they want to profit still more. Paul Brown, NPR News, Washington.
 
In a matter of days, the Northeastern US is expected to feel the effects of Hurricane Irene, the first of the Atlantic storm season. The Category 3 hurricane is barreling toward the Turks and Caicos Islands. It is on track to hit the Eastern Seaboard, perhaps making landfall in North Carolina by the weekend. Residents of the mid-Atlantic and northeastern coasts are on alert with the threat of heavy rains, winds and possibly tornadoes 13.
 
And recapping our top story, much of the Northeastern US rattled today by a rare 5.8-magnitude earthquake. There were some reports of minor injuries, nothing serious, and damage assessment is under way.