There was some rumbling underground in Greater Sudbury, Ont., over the weekend.
Earthquakes Canada confirms there was a 2.9-magnitude earthquake on Sunday at 8:46 p.m. They have received about 40 reports from residents in the area about the quake.
It also confirmed the seismic event was mining-related and originated at Creighton Mine.
CTV News has media requests out to the mine’s owner, Vale, as well as the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNOLAB), which operates at the site in Lively.
In a statement Monday, Vale said there was a seismic event measuring 3.5 in magnitude Sunday.
“All employees are safe and accounted for and all established protocols were followed,” Vale Base Metals said.
“The mine has since been inspected and returned to normal operations. Members of the public with questions are encouraged to contact Vale’s Community Concerns Line at 705-222-VALE (8253).”
In an email Monday, SNOLAB said the event didn’t affect their underground operations. It operates a deep underground research laboratory located in Creighton Mine.
No effect at SNOLAB
“Sunday’s seismic event did not impact our operations or the ongoing underground experiments at SNOLAB,” spokesperson Samantha Kuula said in an email.
“We had no staff in the underground lab at the time, our systems have remained stable, and all safety protocols were successfully followed. We continue to closely monitor conditions to ensure the safety and integrity of our research environment.”
Earthquakes Canada said the seismic event was lightly felt in Sudbury, generating much chatter on social media.
Seismologist Stephen Crane said this is the eighth seismic event recorded from Creighton Mine, with the largest -- 3.7 -- coming in January 2021.
This one was smaller, Crane said.
“The Sudbury area would have been expected to feel some light shaking, probably similar to a low-flying plane or a heavy truck driving by,” he said.
“We do record them quite often particularly when it’s a rather active mine that does cause induced seismicity. We do locate these for our studies as they provide a good source of ground truth events.”
Crane said seismic events from blasting tend to be smaller, with the larger events associated with rock bursts.
The event was also recorded by the United States Geological Survey, which said the quake originated at a depth of 10 kilometres.
RELATED STORIES:
