A 5.0 magnitude earthquake shook South Africa’s Johannesburg on Sunday morning, the U.S Geological Survey (USGS) said.
The USGS said the earthquake occurred at 0038 GMT at a depth of 10 km (6 miles).
Some Johannesburg residents reported feeling tremors.
“Earth tremor in Johannesburg. Longest and strongest I have felt! Went on for about 30 seconds, it felt like,” one resident wrote on Twitter.
Security risk and crisis management consultancy Crisis24 said there were no reports of damage or casualties as a result of the earthquake.
However terrified residents who felt the tremor took to social media to post pictures and videos showing the impact on buildings and minor structural damage to walls.
Crisis 24, an international risk management group, said the tremors were widely felt throughout the entire region, and could slightly disrupt service delivery.
The organisation added that no records of damage or injuries have been reported.
“A magnitude-5.0 earthquake occurred in northeastern South Africa at around 02:38 June 11. The epicenter was about 17 km (10 miles) southeast of Johannesburg,” the statement reads.
“The tremor occurred at a depth of about 10 km (6 miles), and moderate-to-light shaking was probably felt in northeastern South Africa, including Johannesburg, and light-to-weak shaking likely occurred in far southeastern Botswana, and Eswatini.
Crisis 24 advised that residents should apply caution and consider vacating multistory buildings where shaking occurred until authorities confirm their structural integrity.
Earthquakes are not frequent in South Africa but they have resulted in fatalities and injuries in the past. In 2014, a 5.3 quake that struck the country killed one person and injured some gold miners in the south-west of Johannesburg.
Follow us on:
