The earthquake occurred just after 6.15am, and was slightly felt by residents…

A minor earthquake was recorded this morning, Wednesday October 11, in Dibba Al Fujairah, the National Centre of Meterology (NCM) has reported.

The earthquake measured a magnitude of 1.6 on the richter scale, with the impact felt only slightly by Dibba residents. The quake occurred early on Wednesday morning at a depth of 5km, at a local time of 6.18am, with no impact felt by the wider UAE.

Does the UAE ever get earthquakes?

For many cities, the possibility of a major earthquake is an unavoidable fact of life.

Thankfully, the UAE does not lie on a fault line, which means the risk of an earthquake is extremely low – but that doesn’t mean we don’t experience wobbles from time to time.

The UAE is located on the edge of the Arabian Tectonic Plate, which pushes against the Eurasian Plate. The boundary of those plates – the Zagros mountain belt of Iran – is one of the most seismically active regions in the world.

Here’s a world map showing the tectonic plates:

Because of Iran’s proximity to the UAE, when it is hit by a big quake, Dubai typically experiences mild to moderate tremors (so do the northern emirates, of course, but because of Dubai’s high-rises, they tend to be felt more strongly here).