A 4.3 magnitude earthquake took place 130km off the coast of Cairns on Wednesday night.
Around 10:13 pm, residents reported feeling the ground shake.
Geoscience Australia seismologist Jonathan Bathgate said that reports of the earthquake being unusually powerful were inaccurate.
“An earthquake of this magnitude is not too unusual for the area. There is a seismic history in the offshore area. There was a 4.8 magnitude earthquake off Innisfail in 2003, and a 4.3 in 1990.”
The tremor was shallow, at only 10km below the sea.
“That’s quite common for earthquakes in Australia and just in the offshore region. They are usually in the top 20 kilometres of the earth’s crust,” Mr Bathgate said.
According to Mr Bathgate, there is no tsunami risk, despite the earthquake being offshore. Seismologists do not find cause for concern about tsunamis until an earthquake is found to be of a magnitude 6.5 or higher.
As of 9:30 am, 24 residents have reported feeling the tremor.
There have been no reports of injuries or damage.
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