Earth tremors felt in Barbados

Okay, peoples, now that the nerves have settled I can tell you that around 3:00 p.m. an earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter Scale hit near Martinique, at longitude 14.9 degrees North, 61.2 degrees West. It was also felt as far away as Venezuela, Guyana and Trinidad.

In Barbados, reports are still coming in but we seemed to have been spared the worse of it. Traffic is gridlocked, especially near the City, and there were reports of roof tiles falling from the Royal Bank of Canada in Broad Street, damaging a car and blocking the street. Part of a house in Ellerton, St. George reportedly fell into a gully. People are in the streets and walking to open areas. The cellphone system is partially down so persons are having difficulty communicating. Some patients were also evacuated from the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

In Guadeloupe there are reports that a 3 year old girl was killed and her sister injured.

Here is a report from Caribbean360.com:

The United States Geological Survey has reported that a magnitude 7.3 earthquake has struck near Martinique.

ABC news is also reporting that a 3 year old girl was killed and her sister is in critical condition when a wall collapsed in Guadeloupe.

The earthquake struck the island at 3 p.m. local time approximately 13 miles (21 km) northwest of the island, at a depth of 90 miles (145.4 km).

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a statement for Caribbean countries excluding Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands indicating that a tsunami was not expected in the Caribbean due to the depth of the quake.

In addition, the U.S. West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center noted that no tsunami warning or watch was in effect. According to the centre, no Tsunami's were expected along the coasts of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the U.S. Atlantic.

We Bajans are novices when it comes to earthquakes and tremors, never having experienced any significant ones before. We have to get educated fast, because the earth seems to be on the move in the region and other parts of the world.

Map: Barbados Underground

Will keep you all posted, but folks overseas can rest assured that there are no reports of deaths or serious injury here.

For details on the quake, click here.