A small earthquake was recorded near San Miguel de Salinas on Sunday evening, with the tremor reportedly felt by residents in parts of the Vega Baja.
The earthquake occurred at 9.37pm on June 28 and measured 1.6 on the Richter scale. Its epicentre was located close to San Miguel de Salinas at a depth of approximately nine kilometres.
Although earthquakes of this magnitude are usually too weak to cause damage and are often detected only by monitoring equipment, the relatively shallow depth meant that some residents across the surrounding area reported feeling a brief movement.
There were no reports of injuries or structural damage.
San Miguel de Salinas and the wider Vega Baja are situated in one of the most seismically active parts of south-eastern Spain. The region lies close to several geological fault systems linked to the continuing movement and interaction of the African and Eurasian tectonic plates.
Minor tremors are therefore recorded periodically throughout Alicante and neighbouring Murcia, although most are too small to be noticed by the public.
The Vega Baja also has a significant history of seismic activity. The most devastating event was the Torrevieja earthquake of March 21, 1829, which destroyed or seriously damaged communities across the region and claimed more than 800 lives.
Sunday’s earthquake was extremely minor by comparison and posed no significant danger.
The San Miguel tremor was recorded exactly one hour after a stronger earthquake struck northern Algeria. That earthquake, measuring magnitude 4.3, occurred at 8.37pm at a depth of around 19 kilometres and was widely felt in the surrounding area.
Despite the close timing, there is no evidence that the two earthquakes were directly connected. Both occurred within the broader western Mediterranean seismic zone, where movements between the African and Eurasian plates regularly generate earthquakes of varying intensity.
