Quake Hits Rural Australia, No Injuries or DamageAn earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale hit the southwest corner of Australia on Saturday morning but caused no damage or injuries, said a seismologist in Sydney.The quake hit the Ravensthorpe-Hopetoun area 450km (280 miles) southeast of Perth in Western Australia state, a spokesman for Geoscience Australia in Canberra said. "It's the biggest we have had in that particular region...for about the last 30 years," said the spokesman. He said there were reports of violent shaking, but no damage or injuries as the region the quake hit was mainly rural. Australia is not reknown for earthquakes lying off the Pacific "Ring of Fire", but in 1989 a 5.6 quake hit the industrial city of Newcastle on the east coast killing 12 people. |
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