Earthquake which felt like ‘underground explosion’ rocks north of England

An earthquake rocked the north-west of England last night which felt like ‘an underground explosion’.

The 3.3 magnitude tremor struck shortly after 11.23pm and was felt across Lancashire and the southern Lake District.

The Birtish Geographical Survey believes the epicentre was just off the coast of Silverdale, Lancashire at a depth of 1.86 miles.

The towns of Kendal and Ulverston would have felt most of the quake, being within 12 miles of the epicentre.

Residents told the BGS it ‘felt like an underground explosion” and was “so powerful it shook the whole house’.

The Volcano Discovery website, which also collects information on earthquakes, received more than 1,100 reports from people who were in the area at the time.

But most reports detailed ‘light’ or ‘weak’ shaking.

Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service said ‘many residents felt or heard a loud bang’.

Lancaster police confirmed they had received reports of a ‘loud explosion” in the area.

They said: ‘There have been no reports of anyone injured or damage caused but we have officers in the area, together with colleagues from the Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service and the North West Ambulance Service.’

Between 200 and 300 earthquakes are detected in the UK each year, but only around 20 to 30 are strong enough to be felt.

Most go unnoticed, recorded only by sensitive instruments, and the vast majority cause little or no damage.

The most recent earthquake measuring more than 3.3 magnitude was felt in parts of Perth and Kinross on October 20.

The BGS said the quake struck at 7.25am, with its epicentre in Pubil, in the Glen Lyon region.

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