Magnitude 4.1 Earthquake Shakes North-East Victoria

Hundreds of Victorians woke up to quite a surprise this morning as a magnitude 4.1 earthquake shook the north-east of Melbourne. The quake hit just before 4 a.m. near Woods Point, not far from Jamieson, and it seems many people felt its impact.

Geoscience Australia reported that over 1,800 individuals have reached out to say they felt the tremor. Residents from as far as Ballarat to the west and Albury-Wodonga in the north-east reported the shaking. Phil Cummins, a senior seismologist, mentioned that while he doesn’t think there will be structural damage, those close to where the quake struck likely experienced some strong shaking.

This earthquake is part of an ongoing sequence that started with a much larger quake back in 2021, which also rattled the area and caused some building damage, but fortunately no serious injuries. Cummins explained that aftershocks can keep happening for a long time, and while they tend to decrease in frequency and size, there can still be some notable ones in the mix.

In the north-west of Melbourne, a Moonee Ponds resident named Sarah shared her experience, saying she initially thought it was just a noisy rubbish truck. However, she quickly realized her apartment was shaking and tuned in to ABC Radio to confirm her suspicions.

Over in East Gippsland, Tracey described her experience as a moment of shock, noting that it startled her pets – even her Siberian cat opened its eyes wide. She mentioned her kelpie was ready to herd something, which must have been quite a sight!

Another angle of the story comes from Indi Wheeler, a farmer in Mansfield. She was half-asleep when she felt her bed frame start to shake at around 3:49 a.m. The farmhouse rumbled, and she described it as a weird wave passing over her. It was her first earthquake, and it definitely left an impression.

VicEmergency sent out an alert warning that minor damage might have occurred after the quake, which was measured at a depth of eight kilometers. The warning reached a wide area in eastern Victoria, stretching from the outskirts of Melbourne up to Falls Creek, and even to Shepparton and Wangaratta.

The Bureau of Meteorology quickly reassured everyone that there was no tsunami threat linked to the earthquake. Meanwhile, the Seismology Research Centre highlighted that this quake was the largest to hit Victoria’s alpine region since a notable previous event. Adam Pascale from the center explained that the quake was felt lightly across Melbourne, lasting just a second or two for most people.

While there have been over 1,600 aftershocks since the initial large earthquake in 2021, experts believe that this kind of seismic activity is just part of normal behavior following such a significant event.