Terrified residents have described being shaken and stirred after a 3.3 magnitude earthquake shook homes in the north of England.
Some feared a Chernobyl-style nuclear catastrophe at the nearby atomic power plant in Heysham, Lancashire, before finding “seismic activity” had disturbed thousands of people across the north of the county and south Cumbria.
Houses shuddered and fixtures and fittings rattled when the earthquake struck, shortly after 11.23pm on Wednesday.
The British Geological Survey (BGS) said tremors were felt across Lancashire and the southern Lake District, including the towns of Kendal and Ulverston, within 12 miles of the epicentre.
Data suggests the quake occurred at a depth of 1.86 miles, just off the coast of the picturesque village of Silverdale, Lancashire, causing consternation among residents and the neighbourhood watch group to erupt.
Carrie-Ann Craxford, who lives there and was working in the village shop on Thursday, told the Press Association: “So about twenty minutes past eleven, I literally just decided to go to sleep, because I’m back here at six in the morning, and there was just this sudden big rumble, big crash bang.
“It literally only lasted five seconds but our house did shake, I was quite alarmed.
“I got up and my mum was also alarmed and then my brother was like, ‘What’s going on?’
“And we thought the boiler had blown up or a radiator had gone or something, but in fact, no, it was an earthquake.
“We investigated all round the house and my brother realised, it’s probably something else.
“Then I asked my friends and they went on Twitter, then on Twitter it said there had been seismic activity, so that’s how I found out.
“We have a neighbourhood watch chat and of course everyone was kicking off and very frightened and very, ‘What was that? What’s just happened?’ Because you know, crime in the area.
“But someone messaged and said, ‘Has Heysham gone up in flames?’ You know, ‘Is it another Chernobyl?’
“It was definitely not expected, we don’t really have that kind of thing in the UK at all.”
Retired coal-miner Dean Howson, said: “Well I was just getting into bed with the wife, we’d been sat reading about some backpackers in a thunderstorm in Florida and I put the book down and settled into bed and boom!
“There’s a huge bang and we jumped up, dressing gowns on, bewildered as to what it might be.
“Went down out into the road, having a look round the house and people were gathering out there, torches, the lady a couple of doors up thought her kiln might have exploded because she had been using it in the garage that evening.
“A call from a lad down the road and he said, ‘What were that? What were that? Did the earth move for you?’
“We had no idea, so ten minutes later we went back in.
“I went on the village neighbourhood watch when I got in and there was someone had posted up a ‘seismic event’.
“I were talking to a couple out on the row (street) and I likened it to a strata break from my old coal mining days, that fits very well with the seismic earthquake that apparently we’ve had. Quite something for round here.”
Colin Frith, who was staying in Arnside, just up the coast from the village, said: “It was bang on 23 minutes past 11, there was an almighty rumble then a very loud noise.
“I thought a lorry had driven into the property or somebody was trying to break in.
“I was scared, I jumped up, started shouting to say, ‘Get away from the house!’, thinking someone was breaking in.
“It was scary. I was shaking and I jumped up and started shouting at the front door ‘Get away from the house!’
“Then it went away, and I checked on the cameras, there was nothing seen. Woke up this morning to find there had been an earthquake.
“I’ve spoken to the neighbours this morning and two of the neighbours didn’t hear anything or feel anything.”
Sue Anderson wrote on a Carnforth social media page: “Absolutely shaken to my core. Don’t think I’ll be sleeping tonight, terrified.”
Lynn Snowdon wrote on the Facebook page for Carnforth, Lancashire: “What the hell was that? House just shaken like a leaf?”
Dozens of people reported similar experiences, with links posted to details of the tremor on the Volcano Discovery website.
One resident in the village of Over Kellet, Lancashire, said: “It felt like my whole house moved side to side and everything inside just shook, and it was one big thud then the after-shakes seemed to last a bit longer than the first shake and slowly fizzled out. Very scary.”
Lancashire Police said in a statement: “At 11.23pm on Wednesday night, we received reports of a loud explosion in the Carnforth area.
“There has been a minor earthquake in the area, near to the Lancashire and Cumbria border, measuring 3.3 magnitude.
“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.”
Each year the BGS detects between 200 and 300 earthquakes in the UK, but only about 20 to 30 are strong enough to be felt.
