A SMALL earthquake was recorded in the Hunter Valley in the early hours of Thursday morning.
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The 2.2 magnitude quake occurred to the south of Cessnock shortly after 5am on June 27 with a depth of six kilometres and one felt report.
"It was a very minor earthquake and we wouldn't normally expect that many people to feel it," Geoscience Australia senior seismologist Hugh Glanville said.
Mr Glanville said it was common for Cessnock to experience small quakes with small clusters occurring from time to time.
"Within 100 kilometres of the local area in the last 10 years there was around about 122 earthquakes, averaging 12 or so a year," he said.
The last earthquake in Cessnock was recorded in November 2023 with a magnitude of 2.4.
Mr Glanville said these small to medium-sized earthquakes tend to occur where there's pre-existing fault lines in the region.
"As stressors build up on the Australian continental plate they get released most commonly through these small to mediums size earthquakes," he said.
Anyone who felt earthquake tremors are urged to make a report at the Earthquakes@GA website.
Alanna Tomazin
Alanna is a journalist at the Newcastle Herald with a focus on education. She takes pride in regional journalism which she believes is crucial to informing our towns and cities. Have a story? Email her at alanna.tomazin@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Alanna is a journalist at the Newcastle Herald with a focus on education. She takes pride in regional journalism which she believes is crucial to informing our towns and cities. Have a story? Email her at alanna.tomazin@austcommunitymedia.com.au
