By STEVEN K. PAULSON, Associated Press – 14 hours ago

DENVER (AP) — The largest earthquake to strike Colorado in almost 40 years shook hundreds of people in the southern part of the state and in northern New Mexico, causing minor damage to a few homes.

The magnitude 5.3 temblor was recorded at about 11:46 p.m. MDT Monday about nine miles southwest of Trinidad, Colo., according to the National Earthquake Information Center in Golden, Colo. That area is near the New Mexico border is and about halfway between Denver and Albuquerque, N.M. The quake followed three smaller ones that hit the area earlier in the day.

U.S. Geological Service geophysicist Shengzao Chen said the information center had received calls from more than 70 people in Trinidad and several dozen people in New Mexico who felt the shaking. More than 30 people in Colorado Springs, Colo., about 130 miles north of Trinidad, also reported feeling the quake, he said.

USGS geophysicist Jessica Sigala said Tuesday that Monday’s earthquake damaged chimneys, cracked walls and knocked items off shelves, but there were no injuries.

A few homes were damaged and there were rockslides on Colorado Highway 12 and Interstate 25, but both highways remained open, a Las Animas County Sheriff’s Office dispatcher said Tuesday.

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