January 24, 2006
By JoNews Reporter
A POWERFUL tremor shook parts of Johannesburg on Tuesday, 24 January.
Measuring 3.6 on the Richter scale, the tremor was felt as far as Midrand in the north and in the far eastern suburbs. It occurred shortly before 11.15am, and was centred about eight kilometres southwest of Germiston, on the East Rand.
Scientists from the Council for Geosciences, based in Tshwane, examined the seismic data. It was 3.6 in magnitude around the East Rand Gold Mining area, according to Ian Saunders, the project leader of the South African national seismograph network at the council.
The tremor was at a depth of two kilometres.
The last tremor recorded in Johannesburg was in March 2005, which had a preliminary reading of five on the Richter scale. It had struck Klerksdorp, which is about 200km west of Johannesburg. Buildings in the centre of Johannesburg shook for almost a minute.
The largest earthquake in South Africa was in Ceres in the Western Cape in 1969. It was measured at 6.1 on the Richter scale.
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