ARENAL, Costa Rica - A Mayville native learned first-hand Wednesday what a 7.6 earthquake feels like.
Samantha Nolloth, a 2001 Chautauqua Lake High School graduate and current Tennessee resident, was in Costa Rica when the powerful earthquake struck.
"I had just gotten up and was about to go to a Bible study when all of a sudden all the glass started shaking," Nolloth, an artist, told The Post-Journal by phone. "It went on for quite a while."
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Nolloth, who experienced a similar earthquake while living in New Zealand, was visiting Frank Goodell - a 1969 Jamestown High School graduate. Goodell is the cousin of state Assemblyman Andy Goodell, R-Chautauqua County, and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.
"Whenever I go somewhere something seems to happen," Nolloth said.
She later quipped, "It's been a wild ride these last few years. Next week I'm coming back to Chautauqua County so everyone should watch out."
Goodell, who has lived in Arenal, Costa Rica, for almost four years, said it wasn't the first earthquake he has experienced. It was, however, one of the largest.
"It was like being in a movie about an earthquake," Goodell said. "I have felt a few minor earth shakes, but today was above and beyond anything I have felt before.
"It was rather incredible; it lasted over 30 seconds. I was sitting on my porch and it was like riding a wave but on concrete."
According to Goodell and Nolloth, residents in the rural community known for its active volcano remained relatively calm throughout the incident. The only real damage where they are: A mess at the local grocery store.
"Actually, everything has been really calm," Nolloth said. "I was walking down the street (afterward) thinking it was just a minor earthquake when someone told me, 'No, it was a 7.6 quake.'"
Added Goodell: "It was just incredible."