A magnitude 3.4 earthquake struck the Black Sea off the coast of Sevastopol in Crimea early on Monday morning, seismologists have confirmed.
Underground tremors were recorded at 1:22 a.m. Moscow time on Monday, August 17, according to Marina Bondar, deputy director of the Institute of Seismology and Geodynamics at V. I. Vernadsky Crimean Federal University.
Bondar told news agency RIA Novosti that experts classified the event as a weak earthquake, with vibrations felt primarily in areas close to the epicenter.
The epicenter of the quake was located in the Black Sea at a distance of 51 kilometres from the coast of Sevastopol. Bondar did not specify the depth of the focal point.
No reports of casualties or structural damage on the peninsula were received following the tremor. Earthquakes registering below magnitude 4.0 on the Richter scale are generally considered minor seismic events that rarely cause damage to buildings or public infrastructure.
Sevastopol is a major port city situated on the southwestern coast of the Crimean peninsula. The V. I. Vernadsky Crimean Federal University, headquartered in Simferopol, operates the regional seismological Institute that monitors tectonic movements across the Black Sea region.
Indonesian earthquake off Flores island
The Crimean tremor followed a separate seismic event earlier on Monday off the coast of Flores island in Indonesia, where a magnitude 5.7 earthquake was recorded.
Those tremors were registered on August 17 at nearly 1:00 a.m. local time, which corresponded to 4:00 a.m. Moscow time.
The epicenter of the Indonesian earthquake was situated 46 kilometres north-west of the city of Ende, which has a population of more than 70,000 residents. The focal depth of that quake was recorded at 35 kilometres.
Flores is part of Indonesia's Lesser Sunda Islands, a region located along active tectonic boundaries. A 5.7 magnitude earthquake is classified as moderate to strong, capable of causing noticeable shaking across populated areas.
