The biggest earthquake to hit Britain in 25 years struck yesterday, causing widespread damage and one serious injury. Measuring 5.2 on the Richter scale, the epicentre was near Market Rasen, Lincolnshire, but tremors were felt as far away as Scotland, Wales and the South-East.
Blackpool Tower shook like a tuning fork, and chimneys and masonry collapsed across the affected area. The Association of British Insurers estimated the damage bill could exceed £10 million. In Wombwell, South Yorkshire, student David Bates, 19, suffered a broken pelvis when a chimney crashed into his attic bedroom. He is recovering in Barnsley General Hospital. No other serious injuries were reported.
Dr Brian Baptie of the British Geological Survey noted that earthquakes of this magnitude occur only once every 10 to 20 years in the UK. The survey recorded a minor aftershock of 1.8 magnitude at around 4am. The last quake of comparable size was a 5.4 magnitude tremor in North Wales in 1984.
The largest recorded UK earthquake was beneath Dogger Bank in the North Sea in 1931, with a magnitude of 6.1, ten times stronger than yesterday's event. Scientists detect about 200 earthquakes in the UK each year, but only around one in eight is noticeable.
