I’ve always been a light sleeper. The slightest noise usually wakes me. However I was surprised to be woken in the early hours of Wednesday morning by the vibration of my bed shaking. I live on a busy main road and quite often get trucks and heavy vehicles going past the house which cause it to shake a little bit. However when I looked at the clock, it was almost 1.00am in the morning! I wouldn’t think there would be many heavy vehicles going past at that time! I just thought I was dreaming and managed to get back to sleep. However this was no dream. I switched on the tv to catch up on the news as I always do before going to work and discovered that Britain had been hit by the largest earthquake since 1987!
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. The quake measured 5.2 on the Richter scale and was widely felt, shaking homes across England and Wales! The epicentre of the quake was in Lincolnshire. However tremors could be felt hundreds of miles away in homes all over the country and even as far away as Ulster and Holland! Experts believe the earthquake could have been caused by an old fault line rupturing in the East Midlands. The quake has caused damage to many homes and businesses and experts say that insurance claims could run into millions of pounds. A man was injured in South Yorkshire when a chimney fell through his bedroom ceiling. I was surprised to hear that although earthquakes are a relatively rare occurrence in Britain, the British Geographical Survey records around 200 in this country every year. However only a very small percentage can be felt by residents. The British Geographical Survey described this one as “significant” for the U.K. It was certainly that!
Once You Go Gray, You Never Go Black
12 years ago
5 comments:
Hi, Naomi!
I always thought that Great Britain is safe place for earthquakes... Really 5.2 - is a pretty high in the scale of Richter!
Moscow is pretty safe place for earthquakes too, the biggest one was about 3, long time ago, my Mom told about the chandelier was swaying and that was all. So the earthquake in Moscow was just a piece of exotic for us!
And I feel so sorry for all victims of the earthquake.
Thank you for the interesting story!
Best wishes,
Svet and Kyle
We have tiny earthquakes all the time in southern california. sometimes they can be scary, especially when it wakes you up!
Hi Svet and Kyle
Yes Great Britain is usually a safe place. This particular quake came as a big surprise to a lot of people, including myself. I'm surprised you got a quake in Moscow. I suppose they happen everywhere these days. Some people say it may be connected to global warming. Yes it is a shame for all the people who had damage to their homes and businesses. Fortunately there were no serious injuries or fatalities though which was a blessing.
That sounds very scary Rick! One of my American friends used to live in San Francisco and apparently they have regular earthquake drills in the schools there! Scary!
We had a similar experience a few years back. My husband insisted it was an earthquake, (he lived for several years in New Zealand) but we live in the Midwestern US so I had never experienced one before. Sure enough he was right.
Quakes may be more frequent in places like California, but are far more widespread that most people think. In fact, the largest earthquake in US history was in the middle of the US. The geology of the region (rock vs. sand) causes quakes are stronger and travel further. I wonder if the same is true in GB?
Hi Lynanne
I was quite surprised to hear that we get several small earthquakes every year in Britain, as I've never felt one before. I'm sure the geology of the area probably has a lot to do with it. The experts here believe that a rupture in an old fault line caused the quake in Britain. Thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed your visit here.
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