A 4.8 magnitude earthquake has been recorded in Muswellbrook, felt right across the Hunter Valley
A 4.8 magnitude earthquake - the largest in two decades - has stunned residents in the Hunter Valley with reports of shoppers running for cover at a local shopping centre after debris started to fall from the ceiling.
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Residents in the Hunter Valley have been left stunned by an earthquake which has been recorded as the largest in the region in more than two decades.
Geoscience Australia initially recorded a 5.0 magnitude earthquake in Denman, but that has since been updated to a 4.8 magnitude earthquake originating from Muswellbrook at 12.01pm.
An aftershock was also recorded in Muswellbrook 15 minutes later at 2.9 magnitude.
The shocks have been felt statewide, across the Hunter Valley, Newcastle, Central Coast and even from Sydney. There have also been reports as far as Canberra.
Reports from shoppers at Muswellbrook Marketplace were that the main shock saw people panic and start running from the centre.
Shops also started locking up for the day as a small amount of debris started falling from the ceiling, according to one shopper.
Damage has also been reported at a building in Muswellbrook’s central business district with debris falling onto the pathway below.
There are confirmed reports buildings at Muswellbrook South Public School have been damaged with students and staff safely evacuated to the school oval.
Ausgrid also worked to restore power to a number of homes across Muswellbrook, Denman, Jerrys Plains, Bureen and Bengalla.
More than 2,500 residents had been affected with the power company aiming to have them all restored by 2:30pm Friday afternoon.
Senior Seismologist from Geoscience Australia Hadi Ghasemi confirmed it was the largest earthquake recorded in the Hunter Valley in over 20 years.
“Looking at the history of the region, just over the past 20 years and 100km radius from this event, we have produced over 150 events,” he said.
“Largest one was this one with magnitude of 4.8 and second largest was magnitude of 4.4 in 2019.”
It follows the 5.4 magnitude earthquake which hit the Hunter in August 1994 which caused an estimated $37.2 million worth of damage and the deadly 5.6 earthquake in Newcastle in 1989, which saw 13 lives lost.
Mr Hadi the Hunter Valley region is a definite hotspot for shocks.
“It is common for this region to have small to medium sized events,” he added.
“It was followed by a couple of smaller aftershocks and it was widely felt in the region with a significant number of more than 2,700 felt reports so far.”
Following the earthquake teams at Hunter Water completed a detailed visual inspection of both Grahamstown and Chichester Dams, as per dam safety protocols.
Inspections showed there were no visible sign of damage at either site.
Hunter Water will continue to inspect both dams on Friday afternoon and Saturday morning.
“The safety of our community is paramount, and we want to reassure the community that the dams continue to operate safely and will continue to be monitored daily,” a spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, Muswellbrook Council is undertaking an assessment of all its essential services and infrastructure.
Muswellbrook Shire Aquatic & Fitness Centre will be closed for the remainder of Friday but Muswellbrook Shire Libraries continue to be open.
The earthquake also created a buzz on social media with one woman saying she thought “we were getting bombed” and said she ducked for cover in fear the house would collapse.
While others labelled the shock “scary” and “terrifying”.
“It was bloody huge, thought my house was about to fall in,” another commented on Facebook.
Muswellbrook Mayor Steve Reynolds said it was a great shock to most residents.
“In a time like this I just ask for patience with our state services including triple-0 and only use in the circumstances of an emergency,” he said.
“Our staff are currently working with all departments and are aware of power outages and will keep the community updated.
He’s asked if people can check on their neighbours, especially the vulnerable and elderly, to ensure they are OK.
The earthquake appears to have originated near a local coal mine, with Associate Professor Stuart Clark of University of NSW Sydney saying it occurs due to mining activity disturbing the subsurface.
“There’s a lot of faults in the subsurface that sometimes when they move material the stress goes in different locations and so that can place extra stress on a particular fault and cause an earthquake to trigger,” he said.
“The continent is under stress as it moves northward so its normal for the stress to be released in different locations but it’s a concentration of earthquake just around these coal mines that are probably caused by that activity.”
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