Were you woken by a thunderous roar and the ground shaking last night? You weren't alone. Parts of Melbourne have been rocked by a strong tremor overnight, with a magnitude 3.8 earthquake hitting the city at approximately 11.41pm.
The north-west suburb of Sunbury, 35 kilometres from the CBD, has been recorded as the epicentre. The quake had a depth of just three kilometres (which is why it felt particularly powerful), and it's believed to be the largest earthquake to hit the metropolitan area in more than 100 years.
A magnitude 3.8 earthquake has been recorded with an epicentre near Sunbury, Victoria. The earthquake occurred at 11:41pm with widespread felt reports. No injuries or damage has been recorded at this time.
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According to Geoscience Australia, more than 20,000 people reported feeling tremors, some as far north as Bendigo and as far south as Hobart. Residents across Melbourne have described the shaking lasting for almost 20 seconds, accompanied by a sonic-like boom. At this stage, no major damage or injuries have been confirmed.
"While it's stronger shaking that travels a decent distance throughout the region, we don't expect damage from an earthquake of that size," said Geoscience Australia seismologist Hugh Glanville. "You don't tend to get minor damage until around magnitude 4.5 where you'll get things like plaster cracking and things rattling on shelves."
Melburnians are no strangers to earthquakes – a magnitude 6 tremor famously hit the city in 2021, halting tram systems and causing damage in South Yarra and Prahran.
Potential aftershocks can be expected over the next few days.
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