Quake Shakes Brits Out of Bed

Southeast England experienced a rare occurrence on Saturday morning: an earthquake. Though not a massive quake, the tremors were enough to wake slumbering residents and send a few chimneys toppling to the pavement. The modest quake also cut off power for several thousand people in Kent. The one known casualty was a woman who suffered minor head and neck trauma.

The earthquake registered at 4.3 on the magnitude scale, according to the British Geological Survey, while the U.S. Geological Survey placed it at 4.7. The tremors began at 8:19 a.m. and lasted for about 10-15 seconds. The origin of the quake appears to be centered under the English Channel, near the entrance to the Channel Tunnel, though train services through the tunnel continue to run as usual.

It is the strongest quake to hit England since September of 2002, when a 4.8-magnitude shaker hit Birmingham, in central England. The worst earthquake to hit Britain occurred in the North Sea in 1931, clocking in at 6.1 on the scale.