earthquake gran canaria 4 8 may 2026

Magnitude 4.8 earthquake shakes Canary Islands this Friday

Earthquake swarm off Gran Canaria

A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck the Canary Islands at 09:50 local time this Friday, according to data first recorded by the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (CSEM) and later confirmed by Spain’s National Geographic Institute (IGN) and the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute (Involcan).

The quake was followed by three further tremors of lower magnitude. The epicentre was located at sea, northeast of Gran Canaria, at a depth of 30 kilometres. Coordinates place it approximately 61 kilometres north of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 105 kilometres northeast of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, and around 117 kilometres west of the northern coast of Fuerteventura.

Felt across three islands

The tremor was felt in numerous municipalities on Gran Canaria, particularly along the northern and eastern coasts, as well as in Fuerteventura—especially in the west of the island—and in Tenerife, mainly in the north and east, according to the IGN website. Localities where the shaking was noticeable include Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Agaete, Arucas, El Carrizal, Becerril, Gáldar, Los Quintanas and Piso Firme, Puerto de Las Nieves, Tenteniguada, Agüimes, El Lomo de Valleseco, Casa de la Cal de San Mateo, Ingenio, and Temisas, among others.

The reported intensities are Level II and III on the European Macroseismic Scale, which has ten levels. Level III indicates that the tremor was weak: “felt by some inside buildings; people at rest feel a swaying or slight trembling; hanging objects swing slightly.” However, at this level, no damage occurs to buildings or structures.

Largest quake so far this year

This is the strongest earthquake recorded in the Canary Islands so far this year, surpassing a magnitude 4 mbLg event on 26 February, which was located in the submarine area of the Enmedio volcano. Minutes after the 4.8 tremor, two further seismic events of magnitudes 2.4 and 3.3 mbLg were detected in the same area, followed later by a third of 2.5 mbLg. All were calculated at a depth of 30 kilometres.

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