Earthquake of 4.7 magnitude felt in Southern Brittany
According to the Réseau national de surveillance sismique (National Seismic Monitoring Network) in Strasbourg, the earthquake felt yesterday in parts of Brittany at 10:53 am was 4.7 on the Richter Scale – a “very moderate earthquake but which was felt by the population”, according to the specialists.
The epicentre was located at between 15 and 20km north of Vannes. Many people felt the quake, in Vannes and Lorient in particular.
“It woke me up with a fright, my bed was shaking,” said one female witness in the coastal town of Plouhinec (twinned with Kilkee, Co. Clare since 1982).
“It was as if an underground train had passed under the house,” says Claudine from Caudan in Southern Brittany. “It was very strong. It felt like the house was slipping under the ground. What was surprising was this feeling of there being electricity in the ground, which lasted for several minutes after the quake.”
Thousands of people felt it, with many describing shifting ground and rattling window panes, and some describing it as a dull noise and movement and others even as an explosion. The unusual experience lasted roughly five seconds.
This follows a weaker tremor last month in the Finistère department that measured 3.9 on the Richter scale. No damages were reported and the Strasbourg agency doesn’t expect any further earthquakes in France for some time yet.