A small earthquake measuring 4.1 on the Richter scale occurred under the Bristol Channel today (Thursday), shaking Somerset.
A spokesman for the British Geological Survey said the quake occurred at 1.21pm at a depth of 5km.
Centred on an area to the north of Ilfracombe, there were no reports of damage, however several people in Somerset said they felt it.
Lucy Nicholls said on Twitter she felt the tremor in Bridgwater where the building she was in “swayed”.
And a Burnham-On-Sea.com reader in Brean says he felt his bungalow “tremble” at the time the quake occurred.
The British Geological Survey released this map showing the quake’s epicentre and the spots where the quake was reported to have been felt.
The last earth tremor in the Burnham area was in December 2012 in Alstone near Highbridge, which measured 1.3 on the Richter Scale, as reported here.
Previously, in December 2006 there was a small quake measuring 1.6 under the Bristol Channel, as we reported here. Earlier that same year, in September 2006, a 1.9 tremor also shook the area, as reported here.
Small tremors like these are not unusual in the UK. “There are actually about 200 tremors in this country every year. Most go completely unnoticed by the public because they’re so small,” said a British Geological Survey spokesman.
Did you feel the tremor? Contact us here if you felt today’s quake
This chart shows the exact moment that the quake occurred
