- Did you experience the earthquake? Email: jordana.seal@dailymail.co.uk
A Welsh beauty spot has been hit by a 1.6 magnitude earthquake with residents miles from the epicentre feeling the tremors.
An earthquake struck the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd, North Wales, rattling houses and forcing residents to flee their homes.
The British Geological Survey (BGS) said the tremor registered 1.6 on the Richter scale on Tuesday.
On social media, people mischaracterized it as a sonic boom with residents saying they were experiencing a “long steady rumble” and a “certain vibration.”
Its epicentre was in the small village of Llwyndyrus, just miles from the site where Britain’s largest earthquake was recorded four decades earlier.
People reported feeling the tremors as far away as CWM-Y-Glo near Llanberis and Waunfawr, near Caernarfon.
A local said their house “shook a little bit” and others described rushing outside to see what was happening.
The Llŷn Peninsula ranks among the UK’s 10 most active earthquake zones, with around 300 tremors recorded since 1970.
An earthquake struck the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd, North Wales, rattling houses and forcing residents to flee their homes
The local said
It was the site of Britain’s most powerful earthquake since the instrumental recording began.
In July 1884, a 5.4 magnitude event was felt across Wales, most of England, and parts of Ireland and Scotland.
This caused rockfalls and broken stone with the worst damage occurring in Liverpool 65 miles away.
During the following month, approximately 80 aftershocks were detected, the strongest being magnitude 4.3.
North West Wales is known for its high seismic activity.
Significant earthquakes were recorded in 1852, 1903 and 1940 with smaller incidents occurring in Bangor and Anglesey in 1967 and 1969.
Recently, seismic activity has been concentrated in Powys, where four tremors have been recorded in the last two months.
The latest, a 1.3 magnitude earthquake, struck near the popular hiking spot Naughty Stone in Llangynidr on August 19.
Seismic activity was also recorded at Llanddewi on 27 July (magnitude 0.8) and at Llangalig on 25 July (magnitude 1.1). A larger event occurred at Knucklas on 7 July (magnitude 2.5).
Larger earthquakes have been recorded off the coast of the United Kingdom, most notably a magnitude 6.1 event off Dogger Coast in the North Sea in 1931. This caused a small, non-destructive tsunami to hit the east coast of England.
Small earthquakes have been detected in the Irish Sea this summer. Among them was a small tremor (magnitude 0.2) on July 16th 16 km northeast of Amlwch, Anglesey.
