AN Irish county was the spot for a very rare event early this morning, with locals reporting loud noises and houses shaking.
A small number of residents in Cork reported the issues that were the result of a rare mini-earthquake that rocked the Bandon area and surrounding parts.
The quake measured 1.6 on the Richter scale according to the Irish National Seismic Network (INSN).
The epicentre was located on a site at latitude 51.79 and longitude -8.69.
This area lies between Bandon and Crossbarry, and isn’t far from Valley Rovers GAA club.
The INSN said the earthquake occurred at a depth of 1km.
Residents in a number of areas felt the tremors, including Bandon, Crossbarry, Inishannon, and areas to the south of Cork city.
Many locals took to social media to report feeling their homes shaking and hearing loud vibrations.
Some reported hearing a “booming noise”.
Social media users took to the sites to share that they thought it was the wind picking up, as a cold snap travels over Ireland.
James Grannell, INSN seismic network analyst technical officer said it was “highly unusual” to get earthquakes in Cork.
He said: “The previous felt earthquake from this region was magnitude M2.2 occurring in December 2013 near Courtmacsherry.
“Since instrumental recording began with the foundation of the INSN in 1977, the only other felt earthquake was a M2.1 near Midleton in Nov 1981.”
Most seismic activity reported in Ireland takes place in Donegal and Wexford.
Dr Patrick Smith from the INSN told CorkBeo: “We pick up around 20 or so every year but they’re usually focused in Donegal and Wexford.”
‘THUNDER-LIKE’
Referring to the noise residents reported hearing, he added: “This is most probably related to the earthquake.
“It’s actually quite common and something that we notice with many of the felt reports we receive for the small magnitude events typically felt in Ireland, that people often hear a noise rather than or in addition to feeling the shaking.
“This usually described as thunder-like or similar.”
The mini quake was the strongest of the most recent detected earthquakes in Ireland by INSN.
PAST SEISMIC EVENTS
Only six of the last 50 seismic events had a magnitude of over 1.6 on the Richter scale.
Two of the six took place on the island of Ireland, while the other four happened over water in the Rockall Trough, Rockall Plateau, the Goban Spur, and the Celtic Sea.
Four earthquakes have been recorded in Cork since the INSN began recording data.
Previous ones took place in 2014, 2013 and 1981 in the same region of Cork, though only two of them were ‘felt earthquakes’ that would have been noticed by residents.
This mornings earthquake was the largest natural event detected in inland Ireland since September, when Wexford experienced a 1.9 quake.
