Baden-Wuerttemberg
4.1 magnitude earthquake shakes the Swabian Jura
The epicenter of the earthquake was near the city of Hechingen (archive image)
© Nikolay Okhitin / Picture Alliance
The earth shook in Baden-Württemberg on Saturday afternoon. A magnitude of 4.1 was measured on the Richter scale near the town of Hechingen in the Zollernalb district.
The Swabian Alb was shaken by a powerful earthquake on Saturday. The quake had a magnitude of 4.1, its epicenter was near the city of Hechingen in the Zollernalb district, as announced by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of the Interior in Stuttgart. The tremors were felt within a radius of around 50 kilometers. The State Office for Geology classified the earthquake as “moderately strong”; slight damage cannot be ruled out.
Earthquakes in the Swabian Jura are not uncommon
It was initially unclear whether the quake, which occurred at 1:47 p.m., actually caused damage. The region around the epicenter is comparatively sparsely populated.
The Swabian Alb is a tectonically restless zone, the earth keeps shaking here. In September 1978 there was a strong tremor in the region, leaving severe damage to buildings and infrastructure. This quake measured 5.7 on the Richter scale.