A strong shock of earthquake Of magnitude 3.6 hit the province of Messina at 11.16pm yesterday, December 2nd. According to what was recorded by INGV, the epicenter was located at Italy7 km north of Messina, while the hypocenter was detected in 49 km deep. The shock was distinctly felt throughout the province and as far as Reggio Calabria, beyond the Strait. The first earthquake was followed by a second earthquake magnitude 2.5 – registered at 01:10 of December 3 – and located in the sea at a depth of 120kmfacing the north-eastern Sicilian coast.
At the moment, however, no particular damage was reported to buildings or people, despite the numerous reports received from the Fire Brigade and the police.
From a geological point of view, it is about a highly seismic area: the Strait of Messina – where the Bridge could be built – is in fact located in an extension zone, which means that Sicily and Calabria are slowly drifting apart above an active fault system: to better understand the geology of the Strait, find our dedicated video article below.
The high seismicity of the area is also visible in the map below, which shows all the earthquakes with a magnitude greater than or equal to 3.0 registered in the area from 1985 to today.
