Sydney high-rises rattled by Hunter Valley earthquake

A 4.6 magnitude earthquake has hit the NSW Hunter region, with tremors felt as far south as Wollongong and as far west as the Blue Mountains.

Dozens of residents in high-rise apartment buildings in Sydney reported feeling the quake, which struck 25 kilometres south-west of Singleton just before 3am on Wednesday.

More than 3500 people reported feeling the earthquake, according to Geoscience Australia data. More than 50 residents reported feeling the tremors in Wentworth Point, a suburb on the Parramatta River made of predominantly high-rise buildings.

Dozens also reported feeling the tremors in high-rise buildings in Mascot, near Sydney Airport.

Residents as far west as Katoomba in the Blue Mountains reported feeling the quake. There have been no reports of damage or injuries.

“I was [feeling], like, really strong movements,” one Wentworth Point resident, who said he felt his entire apartment shake, told Today.

Tremors from a 4.6 magnitude earthquake were felt in Sydney high-rise buildings.Credit: Geoscience Australia

“I was [feeling] like, ‘Oh, what’s happening?’ It was amazing and also really kind of scary.”

Geoscience Australia senior seismologist Dr Phil Cummins said the tremors, including “strong shaking”, had been “widely felt” across the state.

In August last year, two earthquakes – 4.7 and 4.5 magnitude – hit the Hunter in two days, causing widespread power outages near the tremors’ epicentres near Muswellbrook. Two weeks later, another 4.5 magnitude earthquake hit the region.

After the August quakes, the Coalition declared its proposed nuclear sites in the region would be abandoned if studies revealed unacceptable risks. The Coalition had planned to build a nuclear reactor near the Liddell coal plant, near where the quakes struck.

More than 50 residents of Wentworth Point reported feeling the tremors. Credit: Dion Georgopoulos

“There have been quite a number of earthquakes in this region,” Cummins said.

“Further north, up near Muswellbrook, we’ve had quite a few of those and two above a magnitude 4.5 last year ... so this is not that unusual for this region.”

Cummins expected some aftershocks, ranging from small to more substantial, to continue for up to a week.

He encouraged people who felt the tremors to report the quake via the Geoscience Australia website.

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