English Channel Earthquake Rocks Kent

source: BBC

4.3 doesn't sound like much to Californians like me, but we live in a place where earthquake tolerance is built into the building codes. The quake damaged structures — chimneys fell and walls were cracked — and disrupted electrical power in the affected area.

Maureen Kincaid Speller lives in Folkestone, and provides an on-the-spot description of her experience:

There are definitely some injuries locally, no word on any fatalities. There is a lot of damage to buildings, with chimneys down and cracks in walls. ... We then went out and started walking round the ward. ... It's like a war zone, or the aftermath of a John Wyndham novel. I went to find as many people as I could that I knew and everyone seems fine, though literally and metaphorically shaken. But the ward has been very badly damaged.

Later in the day, Maureen gives us an update. Lots of fire engines have been brought to Folkestone from surrounding Kent. Many streets are closed, but the closures seem to have been due to fire brigades removing damaged and unstable chimneys.