Moderate earthquake rattles western Germany

Moderate earthquake rattles western Germany

2011-02-14 20:11:23 GMT+7 (ICT)

KOBLENZ, GERMANY (BNO NEWS) -- A moderate earthquake rattled western Germany on early Monday afternoon, seismologists and witnesses said, but no damage or casualties were immediately reported.

The 4.8-magnitude earthquake at 1.43 p.m. local time (1243 GMT) was centered about 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) east of Koblenz, a city in Rhineland-Palatinate near the Rhine. It struck about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) deep, making it a shallow earthquake, according to the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre.

Although very light earthquakes frequently hit Germany, most of which are not felt by most people, Monday's earthquake was stronger than most and was widely felt throughout the region. "Definitely felt an earthquake here, about 10 minutes ago," said user "@gammawaves" on the social networking website Twitter. "The whole house was shaking. A rather unpleasant experience."

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties as a result of the quake.

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