4.4 Magnitude earthquake felt across Saint Lucia and Eastern Caribbean

Saint Lucia: An earthquake measuring 4.4 magnitude struck the Eastern Caribbean early Sunday morning in some areas of Saint Lucia, Martinique, and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

According to information from the University of the West Indies Seismic Research Center (UWI-SRC), the earthquake took place on Sunday morning at 3:04 am local time (7:04 UTC). Preliminary data stated that the epicentre was located at 14.00°N, 60.57°W, around 45 kilometres east of Castries, Saint Lucia. It hit at a depth of 10 kilometres, making it categorized as a shallow earthquake.

The epicentre of the quake was situated 87 km southeast of Fort-de-France in Martinique and 118 km northeast of Kingstown in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

People in several areas in the Eastern Caribbean felt minor tremors in the early hours of the morning. There were no reports of any injuries or deaths or structural damage as per the latest update.

The UWI-SRC reported that the earthquake information was generated from its automatic processing system and remains preliminary. Seismologists are reviewing the event, and the reported magnitude, depth and location may change after further analysis.

This preliminary location has been automatically calculated by computer algorithms. It is subject to potential revisions pending evaluation by SRC analysts, shared UWI-SRC via an official Facebook post.

The centre continues to watch the seismic activity in the English-speaking Eastern Caribbean using its regional earthquake monitoring network. The region lies along the boundary of the Caribbean and South American tectonic plates, making earthquakes a frequent and natural activity in the region.

Authorities have not issued any tsunami alerts or warnings after the earthquake. All monitoring agencies continue to observe the region for aftershocks or changes in the seismic activity.