Residents across parts of North West England were left terrified late on Wednesday night as a noticeable earthquake caused homes to shudder and shake.
‘House Shaken Like a Leaf’: Residents’ Shock
The British Geological Survey (BGS) confirmed a tremor with a magnitude of 3.3 struck shortly after 11.23pm. Data indicated the epicentre was located just off the coast of Silverdale, Lancashire, at a depth of approximately 1.86 miles.
The quake was felt across a wide area, including Lancashire and the southern Lake District. Towns such as Kendal and Ulverston, within a 12-mile radius of the epicentre, reported the shaking.
On local social media pages, residents described moments of panic. Sue Anderson wrote on a Carnforth page: “Absolutely shaken to my core. Don’t think I’ll be sleeping tonight, terrified.” Another local, Lynn Snowdon, posted: “What the hell was that? House just shaken like a leaf?”
Reports of Rumbles and Rattling Fixtures
Dozens of people shared similar accounts of the unsettling event. One resident in Over Kellet, Lancashire, said: “It felt like my whole house moved side to side and everything inside just shook. It was one big thud then the after-shakes seemed to last a bit longer.”
A Silverdale local reported a “loud rumble and rattling of fixtures in house, as though something had collapsed or the chimney had fallen off. Significant enough to go outside to check.” Meanwhile, a Carnforth resident living near railway tracks initially thought a train had derailed due to the shaking and loud bang.
Emergency Services Respond to ‘Explosion’ Reports
Lancashire Police issued a statement confirming they had received reports of a loud explosion in the Carnforth area at the time of the tremor. They clarified the cause was a minor earthquake near the Lancashire and Cumbria border.
The police statement added: “There have been no reports of anyone injured or damage caused but we have officers in the area, together with colleagues from the Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service and the North West Ambulance Service.”
While startling for those who felt it, earthquakes of this scale are not uncommon in the UK. The BGS detects between 200 and 300 earthquakes nationally each year, though only around 20 to 30 are typically strong enough to be felt by the public.
