Gran Canaria earthquake: Strongest quake in 60 years hits Canary Island terrifying holidaymakers

Gran Canaria was hit by the seismic tremor at 7.20pm last night (Tuesday 10 September) which measured 3.8 on the Richter scale. The shaking was felt in 14 of the Canary island's 21 municipalities, with seismologists calling it the fiercest in 60 years.

Its epicentre was Santa Maria de Guia in the north of the island, although subsequent reports described it as being around 13 miles off its north-west coast. The earthquake is understood to have occurred at a depth of 12.5 miles under the earth's surface.

Itahiza Dominguez, the Canary Islands Director for the National Geographic Institute, told media it was the strongest earthquake detected in Gran Canaria in at least 60 years. There were no immediate reports of any casualties or structural damage.

A spokesman for a regional government-run emergency response coordination centre confirmed: "An earthquake has been registered in the north coast of Gran Canaria that has been felt in 14 of the island's 21 municipalities. Several 999 calls have been received. There are no reports of any casualties or major incidents at this time."

It comes after the town of Güímar, on the east coast of Tenerife, was hit by a 3.3 magnitude earthquake in May. According to a report from the National Geographic Institute (IGN), the tremor had an intensity level of II and occurred at a depth of approximately 28 kilometres, just off the coast.

The earthquake was felt by local residents who reported their experiences to the local authorities and emergency services. No material or personal damage was recorded.