Minor quake hits central Korea

The state’s geological survey recorded a small quake in central Korea on Thursday, causing alarm among citizens amid quake fears.

According to the Daejeon Regional Meteorological Administration, a 2.8-magnitude quake struck 23 kilometers west of Okcheon County at 4:35 a.m.

Although the Korean Meteorological Administration received no reports of damage, they have received reports of citizens feeling the quake in Daejeon Metropolitan City, some 40 kilometers east of the epicenter.

One Daejeon netizen reported hearing a vibrating noise and feeling his house shake.

The earthquake division said that the minor tremor had no connection that of the magnitude-9.0 quake that struck off the coast of Japan on March 11.

According to government data, there have been 68 quakes within a 50 kilometer radius in the past 33 years. The data went on to show that there were 42 quakes within the Korean Peninsula in 2010 and 11 as of this year, measuring in at an average magnitude of 2.6.

Irregular low level quakes within a plate can happen anytime anywhere, according to experts.

By Robert Lee (rjmlee@heraldcorp.com)