Madeira shake! Moment classical concert-goers flee church as 5.2 magnitude earthquake rocks tiny Canary island
- 5.2 magnitude quake struck just before 9pm Saturday near island of Madeira
- Lasted for ‘around a minute’ without any significant pre- or aftershocks
- Footage of a Baroque music concert in town of Sao Vicente showed people running for cover
- No reports of casualties but three roads were partially closed by rock-falls
An earthquake has caused panicked evacuations of homes and community buildings on the holiday island of Madeira.
Tourists said how they left their hotels after the 5.2 magnitude quake just before 9pm yesterday, which was felt in several parts of the Canary Islands including Arona in Tenerife, which is 325 miles away.
Footage taken inside a church in the town of Sao Vicente on the island’s north coast showed people running for cover when the quake struck during a Baroque music concert.
The regional tourism minister was among the churchgoers. There were no reports of any casualties but three roads were partially closed because of rock-falls.
Readings of the earthquake’s magnitude could put as Madeira’s most powerful for 45 years.
Its epicentre was south-west of the uninhabited Desertas Islands, around 30 miles from the capital Funchal.
An earthquake has caused panicked evacuations of homes and community buildings on the holiday island of Madeira
Tourists said how they left their hotels after the 5.2 magnitude quake just before 9pm yesterday, which was felt in several parts of the Canary Islands including Arona in Tenerife
‘It lasted for about a minute. We were on the 3rd floor of the Pestana Casino Gardens,’ one couple from Blackpool who were on holiday told Earthquake-Report.com.
‘We knew what it was, having been in the Christchurch Feb 2011, which was much worse.
‘There were no aftershocks, no pre shocks, only a single rumble. Then it was gone.’
Former NHS senior manager Mike Huddart said on Twitter: ‘Earthquake in Madeira. We got out of the hotel very quick.’
Another British holidaymaker said: ‘Windows in the restaurant shook violently. Effing scary.’
Footage taken inside a church in the town of Sao Vicente, on the island’s north coast, shows the moment – during a Baroque music concert – that the earthquake struck
People were seen running for cover moments after the quake hit the small community gathering
Another tourist added: ‘On holiday in the hotel. Very very scary. Thought the building was going to collapse.
A follow-up 2.4 magnitude quake 20 minutes later led to the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere saying they could not rule out replicas.
The quakes were linked to a re-alignment of tectonic plates.
The Canary Island Volcanology Institute said: ‘The earthquake has been felt very clearly in the whole of Madeira and with less intensity in the Canary Islands.’
One woman living in Funchal said: ‘I felt the ground shake and my legs were trembling afterwards. I didn’t panic but relatives of mine who were indoors did.’