5.0 magnitude: Rocky Mountain House earthquake upgraded, 2nd largest in Alberta history
A 5.0 magnitude earthquake shook central Alberta Wednesday night.
At approximately 9:23 p.m., Earthquakes Canada reported a 4.1 magnitude earthquake 37 kilometres north of Rocky Mountain House.
That magnitude was upgraded to 5.0 on the Richter scale by Earthquakes Canada on Thursday afternoon.
The upgrade means it was Alberta's second largest on record.
People as far north as Edmonton and as far south as Calgary reported feeling "weak shaking" on Earthquake Canada website's scale of intensity.
"We’ve had reports of people who felt it out in the Leslyville area, certainly in the Arbutus area," Laura Button from the Town of Rocky Mountain House told CTV News Edmonton.
According to Rocky Mountain House's sewer and water supervisor, no damage was done to any of the town's sewage infrastructure.
"Nothing exciting happened, nothing broke," Doug Fraser said.
The tremors didn’t trigger any system alarms at the water treatment plant, and so far no one has reported any private property damage either.
"We had no complications whatsoever," Rocky Mountain House water treatment plant manager Gary Lewsaw told CTV News Edmonton.
One University of Alberta geo-physicist told CTV News Edmonton that seismic activity in central Alberta has increased in the past decade. According to Jeff Gu, that’s worth studying.
"Some of it was linked to gas production, oil production, and some of them were natural, and then there was an earthquake that was linked to wastewater disposal," Gu said.
Alberta’s energy regulator said Wednesday's earthquake was not connected to wells or drilling.
It pegged the epicentre nine kilometres below the surface, which is typically deeper than human-caused earthquakes.
Rocky Mountain House is approximately 139 kilometres southwest of Edmonton.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Jeremy Thompson
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
Disappointment widespread over budget's proposed $200-month disability benefit funding
Advocacy groups across Canada are expressing widespread disappointment about the amount of funding earmarked in the 2024 federal budget for the long-awaited Canada Disability Benefit.
BREAKING Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
Earthquake jolts southern Japan
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 hit southern Japan late on Wednesday, said the Japan Meteorological Agency, without issuing a tsunami warning.
ArriveCan contractor to be admonished by MPs in extraordinarily rare parliamentary display
Enacting an extraordinarily rarely used parliamentary power, MPs have summoned an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons on Wednesday afternoon to be admonished publicly for failing to answer their questions.
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
Gas prices across Ontario expected to climb to levels not seen since 2022, analyst says
Ontario is going to see a big jump at the pumps later this week as gas prices in the province hit levels not seen in nearly two years, according to one industry analyst.
Ancient skeletons unearthed in France reveal Mafia-style killings
More than 5,500 years ago, two women were tied up and probably buried alive in a ritual sacrifice, using a form of torture associated today with the Italian Mafia, according to an analysis of skeletons discovered at an archeological site in southwest France.
Paul McCartney and John Lennon’s sons have released a single together
A new Lennon and McCartney collaboration is the last thing anybody expected.