Melbourne's largest earthquake in 120 years makes buildings sway but causes little damage

On Sunday (May 28), Melbourne experienced a rare and shallow earthquake, which was the biggest seismic event to strike the city in more than a hundred years. The tremors caused buildings to sway but resulted in minimal damage overall.

According to Geoscience Australia, initial reports suggest that the earthquake, measuring 3.8 on the Richter scale, occurred in the northwestern suburb of Sunbury at 11:41 pm local time. The seismic event had a shallow depth of 2 kilometers (1.24 miles).

Adam Pascale, the chief scientist at the Seismology Research Centre based in Victoria said the recent earthquake in Melbourne was the most significant seismic event within a 40-kilometer radius of the city since a magnitude 4.5 earthquake occurred in 1902.

“It woke me up! Probably 5-10 seconds of minor shaking. The adrenaline hasn’t dissipated yet…” Pascale said on Twitter.

Geoscience Australia has reported receiving over 21,000 reports regarding the earthquake. The tremors were felt across a wide area, with shockwaves reaching as far as the city of Bendigo, approximately 150 kilometers north of Melbourne, and extending southwards to Hobart on the island of Tasmania.

In April, Melbourne surpassed Sydney to become the most populous city in Australia. As a result, many of Melbourne's 5.8 million residents woke up on Monday with interesting stories to share.

“Felt like a plane crashed next to my house or something,” one resident said, according to CNN affiliate 7News.

“I’m on the 70th floor in the Eureka Tower and the entire building swayed a couple of metres,” another Melbourne resident said on Twitter, referring to a downtown skyscraper, CNN affiliate Sky News Australia reported.

One person said they “ran out of the house with a machete” in their pajamas.

“Our old house sounded like it was getting broken into,” they added, according to Sky News Australia.

No tsunami threat: Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology

The Bureau of Meteorology in Australia reassured on Twitter that there was no tsunami risk associated with the earthquake. However, emergency services issued a statement on Facebook cautioning the public about the possibility of aftershocks.

The majority of earthquakes occur within the Pacific Ring of Fire, which is known for its high volcanic activity and where tectonic plates interact by pushing against each other, resulting in tremors.

While earthquakes are less frequent in Australia compared to regions like the Pacific Ring of Fire, the continent does experience seismic activity as a result of tectonic plate movements. Although Australia is situated in a relatively stable part of the Earth's crust, there are still occasional earthquakes that occur due to the ongoing processes of plate tectonics.

In 2021, Victoria encountered a magnitude 5.9 earthquake, which occurred nearly 200 kilometers away from Melbourne. Despite the distance, the earthquake caused minor structural damage within the city.