Buildings damaged as 5.4 magnitude earthquake hits SE England

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A large earthquake (by British standards) has hit Kent in the far South East of England. The incident happened at 8.18am British time (almost two hours ago) The tremor was also felt in parts of neighbouring East Sussex, Essex and Suffolk. It is believed to have been between 4.7 and 5.4 on the Richter Scale.


Houses and other buildings have been damaged and chimneys have fallen from roofs. THere are, as yet, no reports of injuries.

Though small by world standards, the earthquake was large by British standards. The largest earthquake ever recorded in Britain measured 6.1 on the Richter Scale in 1931.


Residents evacuated as earthquake hits Kent

28th April 2007

Parts of Kent have been hit by an earthquake. Fire officials said they were being inundated with "lots and lots" of calls from residents in the Folkestone area.

A website for the US Geological Survey, which displays all recent earthquakes around the world, said the tremor measured 4.7 on the Richter scale, but a European monitoring service said the quake measured 5.0.

A Kent Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said: "We have had calls from people saying their chimneys have fallen down, large cracks in people's houses."

It is understood householders felt the tremor further afield including in East Sussex, Essex and Suffolk.

Earthquake recorded: the image shows the tremor measured 4.7 on the Richter scale






The US Geological Survey had the earthquake time as 8.18 BST, with the tremor located 15 miles south of Canterbury at a "depth" of 6.2 miles.

Sharon Hayles, who lives in the village of Stanford near the Eurotunnel at Folkestone, said her house slid from side to side for about 10 to 15 seconds.

There was no damage to her home, but she said the tremor, which hit at 8.18am, shook the house like a "fun fair ride".

Hendrick van Eck, 27, who lives in Canterbury, said the tremor lasted a matter of seconds. He said: "I was lying in bed and it felt as if someone had just got up from bed next to me.

"I then heard the sound of cracking, and it was getting heavier and heavier. It felt as if someone was at the end of my bed hopping up and down.

"I thought 'that must have been earthquake'. It didn't last very long, just a matter of seconds."

Mrs Hayles said she was sitting in her living room with her husband Martin when the tremor struck.

"We were looking at each other in amazement - you don't expect to feel a tremor that size here.

"It literally felt like the whole house was being slid across like a funfair ride," she said.

"We did expect to see some kind of damage, because we have a quite a large house and it was shifting under our feet. It was horrible."

A spokesman for Eurotunnel said everything was "running normally" with the Channel Tunnel, which runs close to Folkestone.

"As far as we are concerned, it has had no affect on services," he said.

He added: "We have felt the earth tremors but the system is running as per normal."

Conservative MEP for the South East of England Richard Ashworth told Sky News how he went outside and saw a mass of people standing in the street "and wondering what on earth had happened".

He described events as "dramatic" and added it as "really quite an extraordinary experience".

He said the incident had been very widespread and any damage to structures and gas mains would be an important issue.

He advised people to check carefully for damage and to act with normal caution.

Another eyewitness, Scott Kanaway, told Sky: "The whole ground just shook, like something you see in a film."

He said he spoke to his mother about the incident and she thought she had been dreaming.

The Rev Sean Carter said: "The house started to shake for about 10 seconds and I had to hold on to the wall."

He said he did not hear any noise of an explosion.
Kent Police said they were dealing with an incident but would not give any more details.


Eyewitnesses on the Kent tremors


Earth tremors have been felt in the Folkestone area of Kent.

Here, residents describe their experiences.



KAROL STEELE, DOVER


Just before the earth shook there was a deep rumbling noise and the whole of our street shook in an east-west motion.

The seagulls went crazy and in parts of Dover the electricity is off.
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LT COL SYDNEY CARR, DEAL


I have experienced an earthquake in Cyprus and the tremors this morning were definitely similar, I would estimate an earthquake of about three to four.

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HENDRICK VAN ECK, CANTERBURY


I was lying in bed and it felt as if someone had just got up from bed next to me.

I then heard the sound of cracking, and it was getting heavier and heavier. It felt as if someone was at the end of my bed hopping up and down. I thought 'That must have been earthquake'. It didn't last very long, just a matter of seconds.


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Of all the places in the world, you never expect an earthquake to strike Kent - the "Garden of England" - in the far southeastern corner of England at 8:18am on a Sarurday morning, but that's what happened.

Measurements of its size differ - the BBC tell us it it was 4.3 on the Richter Scale, the US Geological Survey has said it measured 4.7 and others have said it measured 5.4. The earthquake was also felt in neighbouring Esex, East Sussex and Suffolk.

These are small by world standards but quite large for British standards.

But still, Britain is no stranger to quite damaging earthquakes. There was quite a large earthquake in England in 1382, and one in 1580 killed 2 people in London.

This earthquake is the largest in Britain since the one that hit Dudley, West Midlands, in 2002.

Homes crumble as earthquake rocks Kent
28th April 2007
Daily Mail

The worst hit area was probably the town of Folkestone on the South Coast.


Homes were evacuated, power was cut and one woman needed hospital treatment after parts of Kent were hit by an earthquake today.

The tremor - measuring about 4.3 on the Richter scale - struck just after 8.15am today, in an area with a history of some of the worst British quakes.

The emergency services were inundated with calls as the ground shook and buildings were damaged, with cracks and toppling chimneys.

An elderly women is helped from her home after the quake


The Association of British Insurers (ABI) reassured householders that damage will be covered.

The ABI's Nick Starling said: "These sudden, unexpected, and unwanted events are exactly what insurance is designed to cover."

A women appears confussed as she walks the streets after the quake struck

Kent Fire and Rescue Service took more than a 100 emergency calls, ranging from issues concerning structural damage to gas smells.

A spokesman said: "We have had calls from people saying their chimneys have fallen down, large cracks in people's houses."

The fire brigade investigated reports of someone trapped under a collapsed building but everyone was accounted for.

Electricity and gas supplies to houses in some parts of Kent were cut off. Scottish and Southern Energy, which supplies gas to the area, was investigating 300 "possible gas escapes" in the system.

EDF Energy, which supplies electricity to people in the Dover and Folkestone area, said several thousand customers lost power, but it was later restored.

Police said there were no reports of serious injuries. But South East Coast Ambulance Service said one woman in her 30s suffering from a minor head injury and neck pain was taken to hospital.

It sent five ambulances and three officers to the Folkestone area. The quake is the largest in Britain since an earthquake in Dudley in 2002.

Rescue workers attempt to stabilise cracked buildings


British Geological Survey seismologist Roger Musson said the tremor was around 4.3 on the Richter scale, with an epicentre 7.5 miles off the Dover coast.

That meant it could be weakly perceptible as far as London. "This is by no means a complete surprise," he said. "There have been earthquakes in this location before.

"Two of them have been some of the biggest earthquakes ever to affect Britain."

The first was in 1382 and in 1580 a quake with a magnitude of about six killed two people in London.

There were also smaller tremors in 1776 and 1950 in the area, which were in the "low fours" and on a similar scale to the one today.

"It was a matter of time before we had another earthquake here," he said.

Richard Ashworth, Conservative MEP for the South East of England, who lives in Folkestone, said: "At first I thought a lorry had crashed into the back of our house, but having lived in New Zealand I soon realised what it was.

"The entire house shook. It was quite frightening and I am astonished there is no damage to our house."

Roads were cordoned off by police amid fears that dislodged chimney pots and masonry could fall.

Residents gathered outside to survey the destruction and because of fears of possible aftershocks.


Paul Hatton, 38, said that he and his brother Neil initially thought the tremor was caused by an explosion.

He said: "I was upstairs and my brother was downstairs and I heard a bang and thought that a lorry had crashed into something or that there had been a gas explosion. I went outside and could smell a bit of gas and there were lots of people outside."

Another local, Bill Byrne, 47, said: "We've got lots of cracks throughout the house but thankfully no one has been injured round here.

Everyone's been outside just talking about what had happened. It has been quite good to see the community rally round like this."

The Salvation Army comforted those affected by the tremor with shelter and refreshments.
Up to 100 people, including families and the elderly, arrived at a church in Canterbury Road, Folkestone.

It was one of the places affected by power cuts - but Salvation Army minister Captain Peter West came to the rescue with an emergency vehicle equipped with its own gas and electric generator, to provide food and drinks.

He said: "There was a lot of activity in the Canterbury Road area, which happens to be where the Salvation Army church is.

"A lot of people had been directed here by the emergency services. Personnel were on the scene providing refreshments and emotional support. "A lot of people were upset and confused, but there was no serious trauma."

Sharon Hayles, who lives in the village of Stanford near the Eurotunnel at Folkestone, said her house slid from side to side for about 10 to 15 seconds but escaped damage.

A family shelters outside their house in the quake region


Mrs Hayles, who was sitting in her living room with her husband Martin, said: "We were looking at each other in amazement - you don't expect to feel a tremor that size here.

"It literally felt like the whole house was being slid across like a funfair ride. We did expect to see some kind of damage, because we have a quite a large house and it was shifting under our feet. It was horrible."

Hendrick van Eck, 27, who lives in Canterbury, said: "It felt as if someone was at the end of my bed hopping up and down."

A spokesman for Eurotunnel said everything was "running normally" with the Channel Tunnel, which runs close to Folkestone.

At a press conference Kent Fire and Rescue Service deputy chief fire officer Bill Feeley said the damage appeared to be restricted to four or five streets in Folkestone and that they had received more than 200 calls.

Damage reported included fallen chimney stacks, cracks to walls and fallen masonry and 130 fire fighters were on the scene dealing with the aftermath, he added.

Mr Feeley said he was not aware of any detrimental impact on the transport infrastructure and added: "The impact is quite local and we will focus all our specialist resources to those areas."

Earthquake recorded: the image shows the tremor measured 4.7 on the Richter scale


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