A 3.3-magnitude earthquake struck Silverdale, Lancashire at 11.23pm on Wednesday with people reporting shaking houses across the North West
A 3.3-magnitude earthquake struck Silverdale, Lancashire at 11.23pm on Wednesday with people reporting shaking houses across the North West
A 3.3-magnitude earthquake has rattled England’s North West, startling residents from their sleep as homes shook, with tremors reportedly felt as far away as London.
The British Geological Survey (BGS) has verified the seismic event, with their readings showing the earthquake occurred three kilometres beneath Lancashire at 11.23pm on Wednesday evening.
According to BGS data, the tremor’s epicentre was located off the Silverdale coast at a depth of 1.86 miles (3km). Speaking to Sky News, the organisation confirmed movement was detected “across the South Lakes and Lancashire, mainly within 20 kilometres of the epicentre, including Lancashire, Kendal and Ulverston”.
Natural phenomenon monitoring platform Volcano Discovery has also recorded the incident, though their equipment measured it at 3.4 on the Richter scale. Their findings suggest the relatively shallow quake was extensively felt throughout the local area.
The website has so far received 1,056 reports from people who experienced the tremor, reports Lancs Live.
Volcano Discovery has noted this marks the second earthquake to affect Great Britain within a 24-hour period.
“In the past 24 hours, England has had two quakes of magnitude 3.0, the largest being a 3.4 quake,” a spokesperson confirmed.
They continued: “Since 2025, England has had 66 quakes of magnitude up to 3.4: Five quakes registered above a magnitude 3, 16 registered between a magnitude 2 and 3, and 45 registered below magnitude 2, that people normally don’t feel.”
Annually, the BGS identifies between 200 and 300 earthquakes that are detected and located within the UK.
One social media user described the earthquake as feeling like “felt like an explosion and vibration coming from underground”.
Another person commented on the intensity of the quake, stating it was “so powerful to shake the whole house”, while another remarked that it “sounded like bricks falling/the roof falling in.”
