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Date Published: 08/10/2024

Three earthquakes rock the Costa Blanca in one night

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The ‘minor’ quakes hit San Miguel de Salinas and Los Montesinos

Three earthquakes rock the Costa Blanca in one night

The Costa Blanca experienced a busy night of seismic activity on October 7-8, with three earthquakes striking the area in a span of just a few hours. The tremors, while not powerful enough to cause widespread damage, served as a reminder that this part of Alicante is one of the most seismically active areas in Spain.

The first earthquake, measuring 2.0 on the Richter scale, hit the municipality of Los Montesinos at 10.45pm on Monday night, October 7. Its epicentre was located in the Vega Baja area, a region with a long history of earthquakes.

Just over an hour later, at 12.09am on Tuesday October 8, a second quake struck, this time with a magnitude of 2.4, northeast of San Miguel de Salinas.

A third earthquake followed at 1.01am, measuring 2.3 on the Richter scale, with its epicentre located in the east of San Miguel de Salinas.

While the quakes were not strong enough to trigger any emergency services warnings, they were likely noticeable to residents in the affected areas, according to the National Geographic Institute (IGN).

The Richter scale classifies earthquakes with a magnitude between 3.0 and 3.9 as “weak”, while those below 3.0 are considered “minor” and often imperceptible unless you are very close to the epicentre.

However, residents of the Vega Baja region have become particularly attuned to seismic activity, given the area's history of earthquakes.

In fact, the region is so prone to earthquakes that experts expect to see dozens of small quakes in the area before 2024 is out. The Bajo Segura region, which includes the Costa Blanca, is one of the most seismically active areas in all of Spain, surpassed only by the province of Granada.

In recent years, the IGN has recorded several notable earthquakes in the region, including those in Rojales (2013), Los Montesinos (2015) and southeast of San Miguel de Salinas (2018).

In other news: The cheapest place to live by the beach on the Costa Blanca

Images: IGN

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