From Iceland — Massive Earthquake Hits Near Hekla Volcano

Massive Earthquake Hits Near Hekla Volcano

Published November 11, 2021

Andie Sophia Fontaine
Photo by
Art Bicnick

According to the latest data from the Icelandic Met Office, an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.2 struck some 1.5km west-south-west of Vatnafjöll, near the Hekla volcano, at 13:21 today.

Win a box of Icelandic Christmas goodies—and a branch of a Christmas tree to get the scent of Icelandic christmas—by signing up for our newsletter here before 15:00 Icelandic time on Friday 12th November!

The quake was measured to have occurred some 5.6 kilometres below the surface of the earth, and was so powerful that it was very distinctly felt in Reykjavík, some 100 kilometres away.

Following the initial quake, several aftershocks have been since recorded. At the time of this writing, some 13 aftershocks with a magnitude greater than 1.0, and four with a magnitude greater than 2.0, have been measured. All of them were centered at least 3 kilometres beneath the surface.

There have been no reported injuries or severe damages to property, fortunately. The location of the quake, however, being so close to one of Iceland’s most active volcanoes may be cause for closer monitoring of the situation. As always, we will keep you updated.

Support The Reykjavík Grapevine!
Buy subscriptions, t-shirts and more from our shop right here!

Show Me More!