A M7.4 earthquake struck the African nation of Mozambique yesterday, centered 330 miles north of the capital of Maputo. According to Reuters, two people were killed in what was the strongest earthquake to hit southern Africa in over 100 years.
“It sounded like an explosion, but I haven’t heard of any casualties,” said a journalist in Mutare who spoke to Reuters news agency by telephone.
Major earthquakes are unusual in southern Africa.
“It’s a significant and unexpected earthquake in this region,” William Leith of the United States Geological Survey told Reuters.
According to the USGS, this quake occurred in a region that has had relatively little seismicity.
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If we can have this magnitude of event in this part of South Africa it might in furure have an impact in the risk associated with our mining in the deep Witwatersrand gold mines. The risk may prove to be unacceptable.