The 2.8 magnitude quake could be felt over a 12-mile radius from the Walsall epicentre.
Image source, Getty Images
An earthquake has shaken homes across the West Midlands.
The British Geological Survey (BGS) said the 2.8 magnitude quake hit Walsall at a depth of 4.35 miles (7km) at 22:59 GMT.
It said the effects could be felt over a 12-mile (20km) radius from the epicentre, with tremors detected in Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Dudley.
One resident told the BGS it felt “like a wardrobe had fallen over or an explosion blast against the window”.
The quake was approximately eight miles (12.8km) east of the 4.7 magnitude one that hit Dudley in 2002 before being felt across most of England.
BBC journalist Elizabeth Joyce was at home in Willenhall, on the Walsall and Wolverhampton border, when it struck.
She said: “It happened around 11 o’clock and the whole house started to shake. Everything on the shelves was rattling, the walls vibrated and there was a loud rumbling sound.
“It was a surreal experience. I was simultaneously thinking ‘oh my goodness, it’s an earthquake’ and ‘there’s no way this is an earthquake, we’re in Wolverhampton’.
“It lasted a few seconds and didn’t cause any damage but it was very weird.”
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