A rare 4.8 magnitude earthquake hit large parts of western France on Friday evening, with the seismology bureau BCSF calling it “very strong” amid reports of some damage to buildings.
Ecology transition minister Christophe Bechu said it was “one of the strongest quakes registered on the mainland”.
The German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) said that a 4.8 magnitude earthquake hit France on Friday.
The epicentre of the earthquake was near a commune in the Charente-Maritime region of western France, at a depth of 10 km (6.21 miles), said GFZ.
AFP news agency said its records show that the last earthquakes of similar strength in France had struck in the early 2000s.
In the Deux-Sevres department one was person was slightly injured and treated on the spot, the prefecture said.
“A series of material damage was reported from the southwest of the department,” with stone falling off buildings and cracks appearing in walls, the prefecture’s statement said.
Further south in the neighbouring Charente-Maritime department cracks appeared in buildings and a power line came down leaving 1,100 homes in the dark.
The earthquake was felt as far afield as Rennes in the north and Bordeaux in the southwest.
In the city of Tours, on the Loire river, law student Lea Franke told AFP, “I stood up and the whole apartment was shaking … it lasted for several seconds then stopped.”
“I was very frightened, I live on the third floor…I thought the floor was going to cave in,” she added.
In the Deux-Sevres department one was person was slightly injured and treated on the spot, the prefecture said.
Some material damage was reported from the southwest of the department, with stone falling off buildings and cracks appearing in walls, the prefecture’s statement said.
In the neighbouring Charente-Maritime department further south cracks appeared in buildings and a power line came down leaving 1,100 homes in the dark.
There was no immediate information on the casualties or destruction caused by the earthquake.
Earlier, the GFZ said that the measurement was 5.5 which was later revised to 4.8.
(With inputs from the agencies)
