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A fairly strong earthquake measuring 4.8 on the Richter scale was recorded off the coast of Gran Canaria on Friday morning, May 22, and was felt by residents across several parts of the Canary Islands.

 

The tremor struck at 9.50am Canary Islands time in the Atlantic Ocean around 61km north of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, according to Spain’s National Geographic Institute.

 

The earthquake happened at a depth of around 30km beneath the seabed and, while there have been no reports of damage or injuries, many residents reported feeling the shaking.

 

Towns where the tremor was noticed included Agaete, Gáldar, Ingenio, Agüimes and San Mateo, along with several other areas across Gran Canaria.

 

A magnitude of 4.8 is considered a moderate earthquake and is definitely strong enough to be widely felt by people, especially when it happens relatively close to populated areas. Quakes of this size can sometimes rattle buildings, shake windows and briefly alarm residents, although they do not usually cause serious structural damage.

 

The earthquake was also followed by a series of smaller tremors in the same area.

 

Earlier in the morning, at around 9.15am, another smaller earthquake measuring 2.1 was recorded between Gran Canaria and Tenerife, although this one was much weaker.

 

Then at 10.24am, a further tremor measuring 2.2 struck north of Gran Canaria, followed shortly afterwards by another measuring 3.4 at 10.43am.

 

Neither of those later earthquakes were reportedly felt by the public.

 

The Canary Islands do experience occasional seismic activity due to their volcanic origin, although stronger earthquakes capable of being felt by large numbers of people are less common.

 

The authorities continue monitoring the situation, but there has been no tsunami warning or indication of any major risk following Friday’s activity.

 

Image: IGN