It’s not necessarily a fear thing. It’s more like WTF - we don’t have 6.0 earthquakes in the northeast. I’m working in Manhattan 30 years. This is the first time I’ve felt the building shake. Very weird.
I grew up in California. My first experience with an earthquake was as a child. I awoke to my bed (which was on casters) rolling about the bedroom. My brothers and I were laughing because it was like an amusement ride. Anything that is 5.0 or less is of no concern to most Californians. They happen everyday, somewhere on the west coast. But, I can imagine the fright an earthquake elsewhere in the U.S. might cause.