The Earth shook. A second time. In France. A magnitude 5 aftershock was felt in the early hours of Saturday in Deux-Sèvres, after a first tremor on Friday evening, the prefecture said. This aftershock follows the “very strong” earthquake which frightened the population of a large part of the west of the country on Friday evening, without causing major damage according to the authorities.
With a magnitude of 5.3 to 5.8 according to the National Seismic Monitoring Network (Renass) and the French Central Seismological Bureau (BCSF), the violent tremor occurred at 6:38 p.m. in the town of Cram-Chaban (Charente -Maritime), near Mauzé-sur-le-Mignon (Deux-Sèvres), halfway between La Rochelle and Niort. In mainland France, the last earthquake with a magnitude greater than 5 dated back to 2019 and occurred in Drôme.
“A tremor of magnitude 5 was felt this morning at 4:27 a.m. in the same sector of #DeuxSevres,” the prefecture said in a statement on Saturday morning. “The firefighters are mobilized and carry out reconnaissance actions, to respond to calls and check the condition of the buildings, in particular those weakened during the first earthquake on Friday evening,” added the Deux-Sèvres prefecture. “Be careful and stay away from buildings that seem fragile to you,” the document also advises.