Vancouver earthquake: second in as many weeks shakes region

Posted October 4, 2024 6:26 am.

Last Updated October 4, 2024 8:28 pm.

Another earthquake rattled Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley.

The US Geological Survey agency says the 3.7 magnitude quake hit at 2:08 a.m. Friday.

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Earthquakes Canada says it recorded the shake at 3.8 magnitude approximately 20 kilometres west of Tsawwassen.

The epicentre was deep, about 60 km beneath the surface, in the Salish Sea between Tsawwassen and Gabriola Island.

Emergency Info BC says there are no reports of any injuries, and there is no tsunami warning.

1130 NewsRadio has received reports of listeners feeling the quake from Vancouver Island to Chilliwack.

Natural Resources Canada earthquake seismologist John Cassidy explains due to the area that the earthquake hit, thousands of people felt the early morning shaker.

“It was close to a lot of people, felt by well over 1,000 people. [We’ve received] a thousand felt reports so far,” he said Friday.

Friday morning’s quake comes just eight days after a 3.8 magnitude quake in the Haro Strait, east of Victoria, shook much of B.C.’s South Coast.

Cassidy says the region sees smaller earthquakes such as these “each and every day” in the region.

“These two deep earthquakes, the one this morning near Vancouver and the one last week near Victoria, were both felt by many people. They’re not unusual, the smaller earthquakes we see every day through this region. Once we get up close to a magnitude four, those earthquakes don’t happen as often, every few years, typically every two to five years,” he explained.

“But we’ve also seen much, much larger earthquakes — the most recent of those was a magnitude 6.8 and that was near Seattle back in 2001. So we have seen much larger quakes than the one today just to the south of us.”

Cassidy says due to the depth of the earthquakes, aftershocks aren’t expected, either. “These deep earthquakes tend to have no shocks. They happen and then that’s the end of it.”

Similarly to last week’s quake, Cassidy believes Friday morning’s shaker doesn’t mean a larger one is expected to happen.

“These earthquakes don’t tell us when a larger earthquake might happen. They really remind us that this is an active earthquake zone,” he explained.

“We see tiny earthquakes every day. We’ve seen earthquakes in the past. So it’s really a friendly reminder to check your emergency kit. Look around your house. These earthquakes have been at night, so, make sure you don’t have a heavy picture over over your bed that’s going to fall on you in the night, or a cabinet that might fall over and block your way out of your room. It’s a good reminder to be prepared.

“Know what to expect and know what to do when the shaking begins. And, this is shakeout month, so on October 17, we have the shake. So it’s a really good opportunity to practice drop, cover, and hold on, which is really the best thing to do when you feel shaking.”

Meanwhile in Vancouver, several people in Olympic Village say they slept through the quake on the coast, but a couple of nightowls noticed something was up.

“So I was in that building, on the 10th floor, here in the Olympic Village area,” one local shared with 1130 NewsRadio.

“I have to say, at first, I didn’t realize what it was. I thought it was my neighbours below. I felt a sudden movement, and right after, a drop almost.”

Up in the northeast part of the province, another earthquake was felt just after 5 a.m. MST, this one a 4.8 magnitude shaker about 63 kilometres west of Fort St. John.

There are around 4,000 earthquakes recorded in B.C. every year, most of them too tiny to be felt.

–With files from Greg Bowman and Kier Junos.