Australia: Victoria rattled by magnitude 4.3 earthquake

The 4.3 magnitude earthquake struck Leongatha in Gippsland, with tremors reported in Sunbury and Wilson's Promontory.

A 4.3 magnitude quake woke up thousands of Victorians shaking large parts of the state.

On Friday, at 12.49 a.m. local time, a 4.3 magnitude earthquake hit Leongatha in the state's Gippsland area, approximately 135 kilometres south-east of Melbourne.

According to Geoscience Australia, the earthquakes were felt as far north as Sunbury, 38 kilometres northwest of Melbourne, and as far south as Wilson's Promontory National Park.

The Bureau of Meteorology said that there was no threat of a tsunami following the earthquake.

More than 4,900 people reported feeling the quake, which struck at a depth of 8 km in the town of Meeniyan.

At around 2 a.m. local time, the Victorian State Emergency Service said no injuries had been reported from the quake.

Every year, the world experiences approximately 10,000 earthquakes of this size.

Just 10 hours earlier, Melbourne's namesake on the other side of the planet had a comparable earthquake.

According to the US Geological Survey, a 4.0 magnitude earthquake occurred at a depth of 10 kilometres close off the coast of Melbourne, Florida.

The greatest earthquake in Victoria's history, with a magnitude of 5.9, struck in 2019, resulting in hundreds of insurance claims for damages and tremors as far away as Canberra, Sydney, and Adelaide.

02/08 | Did anyone feel the Earthquake last night? A 4.0 magnitude Earthquake was reported well offshore of the Brevard County coast 101.4 mi E of Cape Canaveral at 10:48 PM Wednesday. For more information check out https://t.co/0qFKBZjHuG. #FL pic.twitter.com/7mo5wCC1t3
— NWS Melbourne (@NWSMelbourne) February 8, 2024