Small earthquakes rattle parts of southwestern New Brunswick

A pair of weak earthquakes shook parts of southwestern New Brunswick on Dec. 9, 2020. (Natural Resources Canada)

HALIFAX — A pair of weak earthquakes shook parts of southwestern New Brunswick early Wednesday morning.

Natural Resources Canada recorded the first earthquake as 2.7 in magnitude, occurring at a depth of 5 km at 6:44 a.m.

A few hours later, a 2.9-magnitude earthquake, also at a depth of 5 km, was reported near the same location at 8:44 a.m.

The epicentre of the earthquakes has been evaluated to be near Oak Bay, N.B. Light shaking was reported in the communities of St. Stephen, St. George, and St. Andrews.

There are no reports of damage at this time.

The last significant earthquake report for the province was a magnitude 2.3, which occurred about 8 km north of Bathurst on March 5, 2020.

New Brunswick is located in the Northern Appalachians Seismic Zone, which extends south into New England as far as Boston. Earthquake causes in this area are not well understood as they do not occur as a result of a plate boundary. Instead, according to Natural Resources Canada, they are result of local geological stress and crustal weakness.