West Midlands hit by earthquake

22 February 2022

News image — The Walsall earthquake was felt across the West Midlands on Monday evening

Getty Images Walsall — The Walsall earthquake was felt across the West Midlands on Monday evening

An earthquake has shaken homes across the West Midlands.

The British Geological Survey (BGS) said the 2.8 magnitude quake hit Walsall at a depth of 4.35 miles (7km) at 22:59 GMT on Monday.

It said the effects could be felt over a 12-mile (20km) radius from the epicentre, with tremors detected in Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Dudley.

One resident told the BGS it felt "like a wardrobe had fallen over or an explosion blast against the window".

The quake was approximately eight miles (12.8km) east of the 4.7 magnitude one that hit Dudley in 2002 before being felt across most of England.

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Jo Yarnall from Aldridge, Walsall, said she was watching TV when the house began "shuddering".

"It felt like we were on the flight path for Birmingham Airport and a plane had just flown extremely low to the house," she said, adding the experience took her back to the 2002 event.

Other residents thought the quake was more stormy weather heading their way.

Lorraine Smith, who lives in Stone Cross, West Bromwich, said there were "two rumbles" which she thought was a "truck going down the street" or a thunderstorm.

A 15-year-old Aldridge resident said: "At first, I thought it was something falling down the stairs, then as it got louder I thought maybe it was a tree from the storm falling down."

The teenager added she thought she was the only one feeling the rumbles, until, she said, her friend fell off the edge of her bed during a Facetime call.