BREAKING NEWS: Fears of damage as 6.4-magnitude earthquake hits Albania
- Eastern Europe was rattled by an earthquake at 3.55am today
- Epicenter of the 6.4-magnitude quake was in Albania close to the capital Tirana
- A tremor of that size is capable of causing serious damage, experts said
A large earthquake jolted eastern Europe this morning with reports of shaking felt from Albania to Macedonia.
The epicenter of the tremor, which had a preliminary magnitude of 6.4, was north of Durres, a coastal town around 20 west of Albania’s capital Tirana.
The US Geological Survey said a quake of that size had the potential to cause widespread damage and casualties, although there were no immediate reports of either.
A map showing the location of the earthquake north of Durres, on the west coast of Albania
Many reports of shaking came from the Macedonian capital Skopje, 100 miles north east of the epicenter. One local, Eva Ellereit, tweeted: ‘Nothing like waking up to your entire bedroom shaking in the middle of the night #earthquake.’
In September a 5.6-magnitude quake in almost the same spot injured at least 70 people and damages dozens of buildings. If the magnitude is confirmed at 6.4, today’s would be around 16 times stronger, experts said.
An aftershock of around 5.4-magnitude shook the area minutes after the main tremor.
Computer predictions from the USGS said around 8,000 people would have felt ‘severe’ shaking in today’s quake, and a total of almost 12 million would have felt it in countries including Greece, Montenegro, Kosovo and North Macedonia.