Magnitude 5.0 ML Casualties None Date 22 September 2002 | Areas affected United Kingdom Depth 14,000 m | |
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Similar 2002 Bou'in‑Zahra earthquake, 2008 Lincolnshire earthquake, 2002 Molise earthquake, 1990 Luzon earthquake, 2001 Gujarat earthquake | ||
The 2002 Dudley earthquake struck the West Midlands of United Kingdom on 22 September at 23:53 UTC (23 September, 00:53 local time). The shock registered 5.0 on the Richter scale and lasted approximately 20 seconds.
It was the largest earthquake to hit the UK since the 1990 Bishop's Castle earthquake, but there were no injuries and only minor structural damage. The epicentre was located at the junction of High Arcal Road and Himley Road (grid reference SO898913) in the district of South Staffordshire, just outside the boundary of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, approximately two miles west of Dudley Town Centre.
The tremor was felt over an area of 260,000 square kilometres (100,387 sq mi), including Wales, Liverpool, Derby, Yorkshire, Wiltshire and London. The furthest felt reports came from Carlisle in the north, and Truro in the South.
An aftershock of magnitude 2.7 occurred on 23 September at 03:32 UTC (04:32 local time), and was felt locally throughout Dudley and in Birmingham.