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BBC News

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Large parts of England and Wales have been hit by an earthquake measuring 4.8 on the Richter scale.

Buildings shook for up to 30 seconds in parts of the West Midlands, Wales, North Yorkshire, London, and Wiltshire.

The tremor began at 0053 BST and its epicentre was in Dudley in the West Midlands.

There was minor structural damage as homes were shaken, but no reports of any injuries.

Aftershocks were felt later on Monday morning from what is thought to be the UK's largest earthquake for 10 years.

Glenn Ford, a senior seismologist at the British Geological Survey (BGS), said: "It's an extremely large earthquake in UK terms but not large in world terms; we'd only classify it as a light earthquake."

BBC weather forecaster Pete Gibbs said: "It's not that unusual to have an earth tremor, but it is unusual to be that widespread and that widely reported.

"However, earth tremors are certainly not that uncommon in the UK."

West Midlands Police said they had 5,000 calls to their switchboard within an hour of the tremor happening and 600 calls to the 999 number.

Dudley police said 12 people in nightclothes walked into their local police station.

Sudden shocks

Julian Bukits, of the BGS, said an earthquake of magnitude four is equivalent to 1,000 tonnes of TNT - that in turn is equivalent to the power of a small nuclear weapon.

The BGS said the earthquake's epicentre could only be located to within about a kilometre, and not pinpointed to an exact street or address.

Dr David Kerridge, senior seismologist, said: "Aftershocks are a possibility but we wouldn't expect anything of the same magnitude."

Although Monday's earthquake was large by British standards, tremors in places like California, Japan and India can reach seven or more on the Richter scale.

The whole length of Wales was shaken and people over 120 miles (190 km) apart felt two sudden shocks.

'Frightening' experience

In south Wales, people in Cardiff, Newport, Caerphilly, the Vale of Glamorgan and as far west as Swansea, felt the powerful shocks.

Callers to the BBC reported doors slamming and windows rattling.

Many miles further north, in Wrexham, officers from North Wales Police said their control room in a tower block shook violently.

Richard Flynn, from Oldbury in the West Midlands, said: "The house started shaking quite violently at about 1am. All the power was cut off and seemed to be so for about a five-mile (8-km) radius.

"The shaking and trembling was really quite severe. Quite a few people came out of their houses wondering what was going on. The streets were in darkness."

Power was restored after about 20 minutes.

Ground swayed

One Birmingham resident, Alex Potter, told BBC Radio Five Live: "My first thought was it's a bomb and then an earthquake.

"There was an earthquake in Birmingham back in the fifties when I was a boy but back then the ground swayed. It was quite different this time."

He added: "It was really quite frightening. I'm convinced there were two booms - lasting five or six seconds each."

Bill Wilson, who was duty inspector for Merseyside Police at the time of the tremor, said he took up to 30 calls from people who initially thought there was an intruder in their home or there had been an explosion.

"I've never had to take calls like this and some people I rang up myself thought I was winding them up but I had to assure them that I was serious."

Between 200 and 300 quakes occur in Britain each year, but only about 10% are strong enough to be felt.

Buildings are deemed to be at risk from a quake over 5 on the Richter scale, according to the Environment Agency.

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Large parts of England and Wales have been hit by an earthquake measuring 4.8 on the Richter scale. Buildings shook for up to 30 seconds in parts of the West Midlands, Wales, North Yorkshire, London, and Wiltshire. The tremor began at 0053 BST and its epicentre was in Dudley in the West Midlands.

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Birmingham Mail

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IT was the night the earth moved - and brought memories flooding back for thousands of Dudley folk.

An earthquake measuring 3.8 on the Richter Scale was felt in the town after it hit the East Midlands village of Cottesmore, in Rutland, at 10.25pm on Wednesday.

But that was nothing compared to the 4.8 quake that struck Dudley back on September 23, 2002.

The 20-second tremor was the biggest to hit Britain in a decade.

Six hundred people dialled 999 and 5,000 more rang the main switchboard to find out why their wardrobes were shaking.

Twelve worried people in Dudley were said to have walked into the police station in their pyjamas.

The British Geological Survey identified the epicentre as an area surrounding Brick Kiln Lane in Gornal Wood, just to the west of Dudley town centre.

Tracie Ankrett, of Irving Road, Tipton, told the Mail at the time that she had just come in from a night out when glasses in her cabinet started rattling and she heard a strange rumbling noise.

"Before I felt anything the cat jumped off the settee and darted from the room," she said. "At first I thought there was a very low plane.

"My stomach turned over and I had sickly feeling - then I looked out of the window and saw everybody else was going outside and realised it was an earth tremor."

Trevor Hayward, of Island Road, Dudley, said: "The flat was rumbling and I thought it was all going to cave in.

"I was scared to death. It shook me up. I could not sleep after that."

Pregnant Tina Cartwright, of Tudor Road, Upper Gornal, said the quake made her bed shake and the radiators rattle.

"I jumped out of bed and the floor was shaking as well. It literally lasted only about 20 seconds but it scared me."

Tina, who was expecting her fourth child, added: "I felt a few twinges for a few hours afterwards. It certainly panicked me."

Internet wags were quick to poke fun at Dudley following the quake.

A spoof e-mail claimed the borough needed urgent food and cash aid to deal with "untold damage and distress".

And it jokingly said "three areas of historic and scientifically significant litter" were damaged.

The message said the Red Cross was shipping in emergency supplies of the soft drink Sunny Delight and rescue workers were sifting through rubble for social security benefit books.

But Dudley Council failed to see the funny side. A spokesman said: 'While this e-mail may be meant in fun it's obviously very rude and could even upset some people.

"Dudley has a lot to offer.

"There are things here which many places in Britain would wish they had, such as the zoo and castle or Himley Park and Hall.'

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Do you remember the Dudley earthquake of 2002?

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IT was the night the earth moved - and brought memories flooding back for thousands of Dudley folk. An earthquake measuring 3.8 on the Richter Scale was felt in the town after it hit the East Midlands village of Cottesmore, in Rutland, at 10.25pm on Wednesday.

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Midlands Today

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Midlands Today - 23rd Sept 2002 - Dudley Earthquake - HQ

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Central News

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Central News - 23rd Sept 2002 - Dudley Earthquake - HQ

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Earthquakes in the UK | Earthquakes | Discovering Geology | British Geological Survey (BGS)

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Earthquakes in the UK | Earthquakes | Discovering Geology | British Geological Survey (BGS).

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Richter scale, which is used for measuring the intensity of earthquakes, was developed by Charles Richter of the California Institute of Technology, in 1935. This ScienceStruck article provides facts on Richter scale for kids.

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Richter scale, which is used for measuring the intensity of earthquakes, was developed by Charles Richter of the California Institute of Technology, in 1935. This ScienceStruck article provides facts on Richter scale for kids.