McAdam — Residents in the picturesque town of McAdam were rattled after a minor earthquake shook the region late Sunday night, and now they want to cash in on the event.
The earthquake, which measured 1.6 on the Richter scale, had its epicenter about two kilometres northwest of McAdam. It caused no major damage or injuries, but has already had a lasting effect on citizens
“Honestly, nothing happens around here,” said lifelong McAdam resident Bervill Quinn as he stood before a folding card table stacked high with T-shirts, each bearing a slogan related to the tremor. “The trains stopped coming, and the only people who stop in town are lost American tourists who want to make it to the border before nightfall… this quake was our chance to get back on the map.”
Quinn is not alone in hoping that the shaking of the earth is a sign of change. Other residents set up tables and lawn-chairs along Route 4, selling everything from “earthquake pills” to T-shirts to catastrophe insurance to Bibles. Vendors are even anticipating a higher-than-normal amount of traffic through town due to the interest of so-called “quake chasers.”
McAdam is also hoping to become the “Earthquake Capital of New Brunswick,” having previously experienced a minor tremor in 2012. Its only real claim to fame at present is as the “Fastest Shrinking Population in Atlantic Canada,” a title it was awarded back in 2002.