The Perthshire village of Comrie has been hit by a small earthquake – with locals reporting they could feel the ground shaking below them.
The 1.6 magnitude quake happened just after 7pm on Sunday.
Those living in the area claim to have heard a “a massive thud” or “huge bang”, with some saying the quake caused the ground under them to move.
Posting on the Comrie Perthshire Facebook page, one woman who was on holiday in the village said: “We’re camping at Comrie Croft and heard a massive thud then the ground shook.”
Another resident wrote: “I thought something had fallen upstairs.
“I’m in the kitchen and the glasses in the cabinet rattled.”
Others described it as being like a “heavy lorry” or a “big train” going past.
‘Weak to moderate shaking’
The British Geological Survey, which recorded the earthquake at 7.04pm, says it was “felt by a few residents in Comrie who all described ‘a weak to moderate shaking’.”
A spokesman said: “We have just heard back from our seismology team – there was an event last night just after 7pm.
“A few more details can be found on our website which has just been updated.”
History of the ‘Shaky Toun’
While the rumbling may have rattled some, earthquakes are nothing new for Perthshire’s ‘Shaky Toun’.
The village has been experiencing quakes for as long as records have existed, and just last year the town recorded a tremor with a magnitude of 2.2.
In fact, the area’s reputation as a hotspot of seismic shaking ended up turning it into the home of groundbreaking earthquake research in the 19th century.
In 1869, a tremor observation centre, which soon became known as the earthquake house, was constructed in the area.
It is believed to be the smallest listed building in Europe and was restored in 1988 with modern equipment by the British Geological Survey.