Belgium: Rare Quake Shakes West Flanders, No Damage
A light earthquake struck near Ruiselede, in the West Flanders municipality of Wingene, on Wednesday evening, sending a low rumble across a region unaccustomed to seismic activity. The tremor, measured at magnitude 1.9 by the Royal Observatory of Belgium, caused no damage and prompted no calls to emergency services — but it generated hundreds of reports from startled residents and marked the first earthquake in West Flanders since 2011.
According to the Royal Observatory of Belgium, the quake occurred at 22:08 local time (20:08 UTC) on 7 October, with an epicenter at 51.086° N, 3.359° E and a hypocenter depth of just 3.8 kilometres — unusually shallow for the region.
A Rumble, Not a Shake
Most residents did not feel vibrations at all. Instead, they described a sound: a thunderclap, a rumbling truck, or a distant explosion. The quake was reported in Ruiselede, Meulebeke, Izegem, Ardooie, Tielt, Aalter and Zomergem, among other places.
As VRT NWS reported, residents gathered at the school gate in Ruiselede the following morning, where the quake was the talk of the town. “My wife and I immediately looked outside, but we saw nothing,” said Patrick De Splenter, an authorised supervisor in Ruiselede. “We thought something had fallen over, but you don’t immediately think of an earthquake. It’s strange that something like this happens in Ruiselede.”
Wout Bernaert, another resident, initially blamed his cat. “I also thought it was a thunderclap,” he said. “I saw no piece of furniture move, only my cat started running wildly back and forth. I even punished my pet by putting him in a separate room.”
Why It Was Heard and Not Felt
The shallow depth explains the unusual perception. VRT weatherman Geert Naessens explained that a shallow quake generates a pressure wave that travels toward the surface, where it converts into an acoustic wave. “That’s why you hear a sound and feel no vibration,” he said. Those closest to the epicenter heard a dull bang; those farther away heard a rumble, “like a truck.”
Seismologists at the Royal Observatory stressed how rare such an event is in West Flanders. “A light earthquake like this occurs about 10 to 20 times a year in our country,” said Koen Van Noten. “But usually no one feels a thing. That people felt this one is quite exceptional.” Colleague Kris Vanneste noted that most quakes occur at depths of 10 to 20 kilometres, whereas this one struck at barely five kilometres or less.
The geology of the region is a further factor. “The rock there sits in a much deeper geological layer,” Vanneste explained. “It’s precisely in that rock that earthquakes occur.” In Belgium, seismic activity is concentrated along the Roerdalslenk fault in Limburg and near the German border, where several small quakes are recorded each year.
The previous earthquake in West Flanders struck in August 2011 near Veldegem (Zedelgem), generating about 500 reports. Before that, the region had gone much longer without a tremor.
Hundreds of Reports, No Damage
The Royal Observatory’s online macroseismic survey collected 706 responses, the majority rating the shaking at intensity III on the Mercalli scale — tremors felt indoors, hanging objects swaying slightly, no damage. The observatory cautions that these intensity values are raw and unverified.
Wingene mayor Lieven Huys was himself at a meeting when he heard a loud bang. “Now that I know it was an earthquake, I find it frightening,” he told HLN. “Especially because none of us knew anything. Fortunately there’s no damage anywhere, but it makes me uneasy that an earthquake can happen here too.” He added that the event would be taken into account in the municipality’s emergency and intervention plan.
In neighbouring Tielt, mayor Luc Vannieuwenhuyze said emergency services received no reports at all. “There’s certainly no reason for concern,” he said. “In fact, I wasn’t even aware of it last night.”
The municipality of Wingene confirmed no damage and no calls to local emergency services. Residents with questions were directed to the central number 1750, and data on the event remains available via the observatory’s citizen survey page.
Rare, But Not Unheard Of
The Royal Observatory records roughly ten earthquakes per year in Belgium with a magnitude near or below 2 — the vast majority imperceptible. La Libre Belgique noted that such events are not rare in the country, even as this one stood out for where and how it was felt.
Belgium’s strongest recorded earthquake struck the province of Liège in 1692, with a magnitude of 6.2 and an epicenter near Verviers. It caused damage as far away as southern England — a reminder that, while uncommon, significant seismic events are not unknown in the region.
For now, Ruiselede has returned to calm, with a story to tell and a lesson for local authorities: even a barely-there tremor can make an impression. Vanneste attributed the high volume of reports precisely to the novelty. “That so many reports are coming in about this earthquake, more than 600, certainly has to do with the fact that people in West Flanders are completely unaccustomed to it,” he said. In 2011, there were 500 reports.