The Appin region has recorded four earthquakes in the past six months, but residents could be forgiven for not noticing.
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The quakes ranged in magnitude from 2.6 at 6.25am last Monday to 3.5 at 7.15am on October 8.
According to Geoscience Australia, people occasionally report noticing earthquakes as low as magnitude 2, although the sensation can be mistaken for a passing truck or train.
The Appin area has a history of earth tremors, with the strongest recorded a magnitude 4.8 quake on March 17, 1999.
Senior Seismologist at Geoscience Australia Jonathan Bathgate said despite this, there were much more earthquake-prone areas in the country.
‘‘Although the Appin region does have a history of seismicity, the area is not considered particularly active when compared to areas in south-west Western Australia [the wheat belt], the Flinders Ranges in South Australia and the Gippsland region of south-east Victoria,’’ he said.
Australia’s most powerful on-shore earthquake was recorded in Meeberrie, Western Australia, in 1941, and reached a magnitude of 7.2.
The quake did little damage, given the area’s low population.
Australia’s most destructive earthquake, of 5.6, was recorded in Newcastle on December 28, 1989. It killed 13 people.
