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EARTHQUAKES

‘Moderate’ earthquake felt in southern France

People in south west France felt the earth shake on Monday night after a 4.6 magnitude earthquake hit across the border in Spain.

Published: 29 August 2023 10:06 CEST
'Moderate' earthquake felt in southern France
The French town of Bagneres-de-Luchon, known for its thermal baths (Photo by GEORGES GOBET / AFP)

On Monday evening at 7.42pm, a ‘moderate’ earthquake of 4.6 on the Richter scale was recorded in Pyrenees mountains in the south of France.

The epicentre was actually located in Vielha, Spain – which is located in the Pyrenees mountains just 20km from the French town of Bagnères-de-Luchon.

According to France 3 régions, the earthquake was felt “lightly to moderately” in France, in the Haute-Garonne département, which forms part of the border with Spain. No damage or injuries had been recorded as of Tuesday morning.

A previous, smaller earthquake of 3.6 magnitude had been recorded on Monday morning. The tremors were felt for about 20 seconds near the French town of Lourdes in the Hautes-Pyrénées département. 

It is not unheard of for the Pyrenees mountainous region to experience earthquakes. The strongest ever recorded was a 6.1 magnitude earthquake (on the Richter scale) in 1660 which caused significant damage and led to 30 deaths.

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EARTHQUAKES

Western France residents count the cost of rare 5.8 earthquake

People in the Charente-Maritime and Deux-Sevres departments on Saturday started counting the cost of a rare 5.8-magnitude quake that rocked large parts of western France on Friday, leaving dozens of houses uninhabitable.

Published: 17 June 2023 17:17 CEST
Updated: 18 June 2023 09:11 CEST
Western France residents count the cost of rare 5.8 earthquake

Cracks appeared in several homes in the Charente-Maritime department just north of the major city of Bordeaux while churches were damaged and inhabitants left in urgent need of resettlement.

There were no fatalities, even though the earthquake was felt as far as Rennes in Brittany in the north and two aftershocks were recorded on Saturday morning.

READ ALSO: ‘Very strong’ earthquake hits western France

In the town of La Laigne, many homes were left cracked with stones and tiles on the ground and chimneys looking as they could tumble at any moment.

The fire service declared dozens of houses uninhabitable.

In La Laigne, “135 buildings were affected by the earthquake overall” and “170 people need to be relocated”, said local fire service chief Didier Marcaillou.

“Most of the houses in the centre of the town have been affected to varying degrees. The church is completely unusable. The school will have to be closed as a precaution,” added prefect Nicolas Basselier, the top government-appointed regional official in Charente-Maritime.

A baker in La Laigne for 33 years, Cecile Apperce was at her counter on Friday when the earthquake struck. “I thought it was a plane crash, I went outside, everyone was screaming.”

“The crockery, the cups, the wine, everything crashed down,” said Patricia Chardonne, who was in her 200-year-old house at the time.

Her husband Pascal added: “All the walls have shifted. We have to relocate but don’t know where to go.”

A queue of 50 people had already formed outside the town hall seeking help.

Deputy mayor Bruno Asperti said: “Stone and two-storey houses were the worst affected. One-storey and recently built houses less so.”

‘Unusual earthquake’

The quake was also felt in other areas, including the nearby department of Deux-Sevres where two people were lightly wounded, the emergency services said.

“It is an unusual earthquake on our territory, so I would like to express all my solidarity with the populations who may have been worried,” Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said on a visit to northern France.

“We will obviously ensure that everyone has access to rehousing,” she added.

The national network for seismic surveillance RENASS recorded the quake at 5.3 while the French Central Seismological Bureau (BCSF) put it at 5.8.

Seismologists said the quake was the most significant in the region since 1972.

Earthquakes at or above five magnitude are rare in France, with the last such event taking place in November 2019 in the remote southern Drome and Ardeche departments.

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