Earthquake in Lorca – Murcia province

Here are the latest facts (from Diario Sur) about the earthquake that hit Lorca, a small town of 93,000 people in the Murcia province of Andalucia:

- May, 11, 2011- First tremor of 4.4 on the Ritcher scale hit around 17:05.
- Location: between 5 and 10 km from Lorca´s center. Earthquake felt in the Murcia province, but also in some cities of Almeria and Albacete provinces.
- Six tremors between 1.4 and 2.3 on the Richter scale follow.
- At 18:47, the largest tremor (5.1 on Richter) hits Lorca, followed by 18 successive tremors between 0.7 and 4 on Richter scale, until 22:45.
- Various buildings collapsed.
- 8 deaths reported so far – 3 people in critical state – 119 people injured.
- At least 10,000 people spent the night outdoors fearing additional tremors. Luckily, the weather was pleasant.
- This was the most mortal earthquake in Spain in the last 50 years.

Earthquake near Granada

An earthquake was reported near Granada around midnight. Personally, I did not feel anything in Marbella.

Spanish agencies rated the tremor as 4.8 on the Richter scale, while CNN reported it as a 6.2 earthquake… Given the fact that no damages were reported near or around the epicenter, the 4.7 level seems more probable.

More details in Spanish at diariosur.es.

Seismic activity in Malaga

The news feed reports that an earthquake was detected this morning at 8 am in the sea of Alborán at 26 km to the South of Malaga. The earthquake had a magnitude of 4.0 on the Richter scale and was not noticed by the population due to the depth at which it occurred. In Marbella, we personally did not feel anything.

Andalucia is one of the most seismically active regions in Spain (with Murcia, Galicia and the Pyrenees region) with over one thousand tremors a year. Most of them have a low intensity and are hardly felt by the population. Within Andalucia, the most active areas are Almeria and Granada.

The Malaga province is affected by the seismic activity of the Mediterranean where the Eurasian and African plates meet. However the activity along the Spanish coast is moderate compared to that experienced by Italy, Greece or Turkey. A study of the Seismological Research Letters summarized the seismic history of Malaga and reported that the last destructive earthquakes took place in 1494, 1680 and 1884.

Obviously, the experts will tell you that the historically low activity level in Malaga province does not guarantee the same pattern in the future. However, we will think positively and try avoiding dark thoughts to cloud the amazing weather we are experiencing on this late October day!