Gran Canaria hit by strongest earthquake in 60 years

A top holiday destination loved by tourists has been hit by its strongest earthquake in six decades.

Gran Canaria, in the Canary Islands, was rumbled by the tremor at 7.20pm Tuesday (September 10), measuring 3.8 on the Richter scale.

The shaking was felt in 14 of the island's 21 municipalities, with seismologists calling it the fiercest in 60 years, the Mirror has reported.

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Tuesday's earthquake was initially recorded as measuring 4.1, before being revised. 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.

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. Volcano Discovery said the quake was 'probably felt by many people as light vibration in the area of the epicenter.'

The earthquake is understood to have occurred at a depth of 12.5 miles under the earth's surface. Aftershocks have not been ruled out.

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."