Darwin rocked by earthquake – at magnitude 6.2
Major Australian city rocked by magnitude 6.2 earthquake: residents describe intense shaking
- Banda Sea earthquake felt in Australia’s Top End
- There were tremors in Darwin and Katherine
- Top End rocked for the fifth time in a year
Darwin was startled by a magnitude 6.2 earthquake in the Banda Sea off the coast of Indonesia.
No reports of damage have been recorded in Australia or nearby East Timor.
The magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck at about 1:30 a.m. local time on Thursday and was felt across Australia’s Top End.
There is no tsunami threat for the Australian mainland, islands or territories, according to the Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Centre.
The tremors were felt by more than 500 residents of Darwin and 300 km away in Katherine.
The quake was also felt in Mataranka and as far as Kununurra in Western Australia, according to GeoScience Australia.
A magnitude 6.2 earthquake in the Banda Sea was felt by hundreds of residents of the Top End
Residents of Darwin (pictured) were awakened by the quake in the early morning
‘Wow! That earthquake was as big as some we had in NZ. Didn’t expect to be shaken up in Darwin,” wrote Jessa Rogers.
Georgie Dickson added: ‘Rise up and shine AGAIN Darwin. Awakened by what can only be assumed to be tremors of an earthquake.’
“We just had another small quake. Bot diff this 1.1 big shake – felt like someone bumped my char, then small waves for 30 seconds. Big roar in the distance after that too.’
“There was only a very mild one that shook the bed for a few seconds, but no other evidence like rattling windows. However, it woke everyone up. Woo – it’s my first earthquake I haven’t slept through!’
One woman said her entire apartment was shaking, while others described it as a “short but strong” shaking.
It is the fifth earthquake to rock the Top End in the past 12 months.
There is no tsunami threat to Australia, the Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Center reported