Hurricane Irene and 5.9 Earthquake: Will US Open Starting Next Week be Affected?

Flushing Meadows reportedly felt aftershocks from the earthquake, originated in Richmond, Virginia, measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale, even as the authorities suspended play at the nearby New Haven Open tennis tournament in Connecticut.

The New Haven Open had to be delayed for more than two hours after stands shook at Yale during the match between former world number one Jelena Jankovic of Serbia and Russia's Elena Vesnina, ESPNStar reported.

It was so weird. On the court, we didn't feel anything, but I saw the upper level, and it was shaking. Vesnina said. I said, 'Oh, my God, what is going to happen?' I was really scared.

Bob Pallaziolla, from Danvers, Massachusetts, told AP that he thought there might have been a crash outside the stadium. It wasn't a truck that hit the stadium or somebody underneath us. It was actually an earthquake. The stadium cleared pretty quickly. Within five seconds people were running.

Play resumed at 4.15 pm local time, when chair umpire Sandie French said, Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the resumption of play of a match suspended because of an earthquake.

The organizers of the US Open Tennis Tournament will review their evacuation plans ahead of the year's fourth and final Grand Slam in New York scheduled next week as Hurricane Irene path forecasts have predicted that New York area is likely to be hit by the rapidly strengthening storm.

Earthquake at flushing meadows! Weird weird feeling thought I was just dizzy.... world number four Andy Murray tweeted who was preparing for the US Open.

We have evacuation plans in place to handle any scenario. But I'm sure they will be reviewed, said the United States Tennis Association's Director of Communications Chris Widmaier, according to a Telegraph report.