Mild earthquake shakes Windhoek

Theresia Tjihenuna

A MILD earthquake of unknown magnitude was felt in several parts of Windhoek late on Tuesday evening leaving several residents shaken.

According to the Director of Geological Survey at the Ministry of Mines and Energy, Gabi Schneider, the quake struck approximately 15 km south-west of Windhoek at around 23h00.

Schneider said the main tremor was only recorded by two stations whereas the aftershocks were recorded at three stations.

“Analysis from our national seismological network indicates a tremor at approximately 23h00 with an aftershock clearly recorded approximately 15 minutes later,” she said.

Schneider said phase readings were picked by the Geological Survey for KJAB (Kamanjab), WIN (Windhoek) and AUSN (Aus) for the aftershock.

“The main event has been recorded at the WIN station as well as at the AUSN station. However, it occurred at the time in which the seismological record file is written for a new day. As only two stations recorded the event, location and magnitude calculations are difficult to perform and further analyses are ongoing to isolate this event,” she said.

Schneider said for the aftershock, however, the three stations WIN, AUSN and KJAB were used to determine the magnitude and location.

Several Windhoek residents who felt the movement took to Twitter and other social networks to express their thoughts. “I just felt a tremour, I thought it was a truck passing by,” said a resident on Facebook.

“I thought it was thunder,” yet another said.

Schneider said an update will be provided as the ministry awaits more data from other stations in the coming days.