Earthquake hits Wales with a magnitude of 3.7 - tremors felt in Brynmawr, Cardiff and valleys

An earthquake has given parts of Wales a jolt  overnight with reports of houses shaking.
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An earthquake hit parts of Wales on Friday night (February 24), with the British Geological Survey (BGS) saying the 3.7 magnitude quake happened at 23.59pm. The geoscientific body reported the epicentre of the event was just north of Brynmawr, Blaenau Gwent, and west of Crickhowell, Powys.

According to the BGS, a magnitude of between 2.5 and 5.4 means an earthquake is often felt, but only causes minor damage. While the UK has never been subject to the more serious earthquakes seen across the globe, seismological activity is fairly common for our part of the world. Around 200 to 300 earthquakes are located within our borders every year.

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On March 21, 2022, parts of the UK were affected by a 5.1 earthquake with some people reporting their homes were "shaking" for minutes. The quake happened at 5.23am off the coast of North East of Shetland with tremors felt in Shetland, Aberdeen, Ellon, Stonehaven, Helmsdale, Inverurie, Lairg, Huntly, Banff and Fraserburgh.

Last night’s UK event follows massive earthquakes hitting Turkey and Syria this month. An earthquake measuring at 7.8 hit Gaziantep and neighbouring provinces in the southeast area of Turkey on February 6. A second earthquake which measured 7.6 on the Richter scale followed and hit Turkey’s southern-eastern region of Kahramanmaraş at 1.25pm local time. Strong aftershocks were felt across Turkey and as far away as Egypt.

So, was this earthquake in Wales the strongest one to ever hit the UK? Here’s what you need to know.

Biggest UK earthquake ever recorded

The earthquake was felt in Ebbw Vale, South Wales. Picture: GEOFF CADDICK/AFP via Getty ImagesThe earthquake was felt in Ebbw Vale, South Wales. Picture: GEOFF CADDICK/AFP via Getty Images
The earthquake was felt in Ebbw Vale, South Wales. Picture: GEOFF CADDICK/AFP via Getty Images

The largest earthquake ever recorded in the UK happened on the Llyn Peninsula, Gwynedd, in 1984 and measured at 5.4. The earthquake began at a depth of more than 12 miles (20km) and created a shock wave that could easily have caused major structural damage.