4.1-magnitude earthquake strikes near Sidney, B.C. | CBC News
A 4.1-magnitude earthquake struck 42 km east of Sidney, B.C., Monday morning.
The earthquake, which occurred at 5:02 a.m. PT, was lightly felt around Victoria and Vancouver, according to Earthquakes Canada. It was originally reported as a 4.5 magnitude and later updated to a 4.1.
It occurred near Orcas Island, Wash., which is between Vancouver and Seattle and just south of B.C.’s Southern Gulf Islands.
A statement said there are no reports of damage, and a public alert was not issued because the magnitude and intensity were below thresholds at which harm might be expected. It says there is also no tsunami risk.
If you’re one of the people who ran outside during the B.C. earthquake last week, you’re not alone. But it’s not the safest choice. Here’s why.
Monday’s quake comes after a 4.7-magnitude earthquake near Sechelt on Feb. 21 and a 5.0-magnitude quake on Feb. 24 off the coast of Port Alice on northern Vancouver Island.
Shaking throughout the region
Erin Stockill with the Saanich Emergency Program felt shaking from an earthquake for the first time on Monday morning.
“It woke me up,” she told CBC’s On The Island host Gregor Craigie.
“Six years with Saanich Emergency Program where this is my job, and this was my first felt and heard earthquake this morning.”
She’s certainly not alone — dozens of people on Vancouver Island wrote to CBC News that they felt the earthquake.
Southwestern British Columbia has experienced several small but noticeable earthquakes over the past few weeks. Seismologist Johanna Wagstaffe explains why these tremors do not increase or decrease the likelihood of a larger earthquake.
John Cassidy, seismologist with Natural Resources Canada, said he felt the earthquake this morning from North Saanich.
“It was a bit of a rude awakening,” Cassidy said.
Cassidy said the earthquake was about 15-20 km deep, and was felt over the entire region from Courtenay down to Tacoma, Wash.
Seismologist Alison Bird said though the earthquake wasn’t “terribly big,” it was shallow and situated in a more populated area, making it more likely people would feel it.
“We certainly have quite a lot of earthquakes that are larger than this off our coast that people don’t feel at all just because they’re further away,” she said.
Cassidy said there have been four earthquakes felt in Victoria over the past two weeks, but none of the activity is unusual as there are earthquakes in the region every day.
A 4.1-magnitude earthquake struck off B.C.’s South Coast. It struck the southeast tip of Orcas Island in Washington state, 42 kilometres east of Sidney, B.C. It was lightly felt across southern Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland. John Cassidy is an earthquake seismologist with the Geological Survey of Canada and Natural Resources Canada. He says it’s unusual for people to feel two earthquakes so soon after each other.
“They’re all different, they’re far enough apart, we wouldn’t expect to see these connected in any way,” said Cassidy.
Cassidy says those who felt the quake should fill out the Earthquakes Canada “Did you feel it?” form.
“It helps us to better understand ground shaking across urban areas.”
Think about preparedness: officials
Stockill said this earthquake was yet another reminder for British Columbians to be prepared for future seismic events.
The most important thing to remember when you feel an earthquake, she said, is to drop, find cover and hold on. If you’re not near a desk or table to go under, she said, get low to the ground.
“We can talk about preparedness all day long, we can talk about alerting, but we can’t lose that muscle memory,” she said.
After you drop, cover and hold on, she said, count to 60 and then you can assess the situation.
Thousands of British Columbians practised how to ‘drop, cover, and hold on’ today during the Great B.C. Shakeout, a provincewide earthquake drill at 10:17 a.m. on Thursday. Michelle Morton has more on how to prepare for the big one.
Once the event is long over, Stockill said, it’s a good time to check the earthquake kit and figure out what needs to be replaced or added. Items such as water, medication, flashlights and batteries are listed on Prepared B.C.’s website, but there may be other supplies that should be stocked.
“Think about what makes your family unique and what items you would want to have on hand to feel comfortable after an emergency like an earthquake,” Stockill said.
