Several residents across the earthquake-hit area in Kent have revealed they felt slight tremors in the weeks leading up to this morning’s shake.
Homeowners across the coastal town of Folkestone and the surrounding area said they felt slight quakes in the earth two weeks ago and again two days ago.
Valerie Stringer, 58, from Rainham claims she
experienced a similar tremor at her home just two weeks ago.
She said: “I was woken up at 6am and my house was really shaking for a couple of seconds. It was scary - afterwards I thought I had imagined it because no one had been talking about it.
"But then one of my friends in Maidstone confirmed they had felt the exact same tremor. it could have been related.”
Lisa Dill, from Sandgate, 31, said: “Two days ago I felt a very gentle tremor and my two terriers have been going crazy ever since.
“I think that might have been the start of this.”
Motorists using the M20 and M25 were warned not to go near Folkestone due to the tremors and the chaos that was being caused around the epicentre and surrounding villages.
Truck driver John Mallon said: “I was driving back
down towards the coast and the signs above the
motorway just said 'Major incident use M2 and A2’.
“I was worried about what had happened but then turned on the radio and heard all about the quake. It is very bizarre.”
Other residents have been speaking out about how their Saturday morning routine was disrupted by the 15 second tremor this morning.
Bernadette Leaheath, from Deal, in Kent said: “I was already up when the earthquake struck.
“I just put a Quiche Lorraine in the oven and closed the door and as I closed the door there was what felt like a massive explosion. I thought the oven had exploded.
“And everything shook in our house.”
Folkestone resident Nikki Knight, 42, said she had been asleep when the massive shaking woke her up.”
She said: “I ran into my son’s room because I thought the whole of his bunk bed had collapsed. Our dog, a Staff, was cowering in the corner shaking and now she won’t go back in the house.
“Our entire chimney fell down but luckily the rubble landed in between both our cars - not damaging either.
“There’s soot in our front room and it is a complete mess.
“We went out into the street and lots of our
neighbours were out there - some were just dressed in towels and pyjamas as they must have been getting up when the earthquake struck.”
Factory worker and mum-of-two Sharon Bryce, 38, who lives in one of the worst affected areas of the town was at work in nearby Hythe when the tremors struck.
She said: “My computer keyboard shook across the desk from side to side and we thought the whole building had exploded. I rang my family at home to check they were okay - and my husband said that the tremors had almost shook our nine-year-old daughter out the top of her bunk bed.
She added: “I cannot believe it was an earthquake - we have got hundreds of cracks all through our house.
“The insurers are coming out to see us later. I hope our policy covers it.“
Keith Crush was in bed at the time of the earthquake and was woken up when his wardrobe doors flew open and clothes and books were shaken out.
He said: “I thought I was dreaming at first - it was
so surreal.”
People in the coastal town thought that the earth
shaking had been caused by an exploding ammunitions tanker out to sea.
Thousands of homes were without power after the tremors this morning but electricity was starting to be restored to homes across the count by 10.25am.
Experts at the British Geological Survey said the
tremor was the worst since the Dudley earthquake in 2002 which hit 5.0 on the Richter Scale.
POSTED: 28/04/2007 12:37:20
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