3.4 magnitude earthquake felt by the public between Tenerife and Gran Canaria
Residents in several parts of northern Tenerife felt a mild earthquake on Saturday evening, as seismic activity continued between the islands of Tenerife and Gran Canaria. The tremor, measured at magnitude 3.4 on the Richter scale, was recorded at 8:17pm by the National Geographic Institute (IGN) at a depth of 29 kilometres beneath the sea.
The quake was felt in municipalities such as La Orotava, La Laguna, and Los Realejos, and forms part of an ongoing seismic swarm that has been detected since Thursday off the coast of Fasnia in south-eastern Tenerife.
By Saturday morning, 40 minor tremors had already been recorded, with 12 more registered in the following hours. The IGN confirmed that these quakes are part of a volcanotectonic series, earthquakes caused by the fracturing of rock, rather than long-period events linked to the movement of underground fluids such as magma.
“It’s not a cause for concern,” said Itahiza Domínguez, Director of the IGN in the Canary Islands. “This event does not indicate a magmatic intrusion beneath Tenerife, but we will continue to monitor how it develops.”
The IGN regularly tracks seismic and volcanic activity across the Canary Islands, one of Spain’s most active volcanic regions. Although small seismic swarms are relatively common, Saturday’s tremor was among the strongest felt in recent months and a reminder of the archipelago’s dynamic geological nature.
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