4.1-magnitude earthquake in Oman's Duqm region

Police receive calls from residents who felt the tremor

The deep water port at Duqm on Oman's Arabian Sea coast. Photo: Port of Duqm Authority

A 4.1-magnitude earthquake was detected in Oman on Sunday.

The seismic event happened at 7.55am close to the town of Duqm, known for its deep sea port on the Arabian Sea.

Some residents called local police to ask what had happened.

“Royal Oman Police followed up the calls received from some citizens about feeling a slight earthquake, and it did not receive any reports of injuries or damage as a result,” said the force in a social media post.

Sultan Qaboos University's Earthquake Monitoring Centre said the tremor was detected near the town, which is 450km south-west of Muscat.

Residents of Duqm told The National that the tremors were strong enough to rattle crockery and glasses.

“We felt them in the early hours of the morning. It broke a couple of my glass vases in the living room. It was very scary,” said Fatma Al Sunaidi.

"My two children ran from their rooms and we all slept together in one bed feeling very scared."

Mohan Banarjee, an Indian resident, said the tremors were strong enough to topple crockery in his kitchen.

“We were asleep when our beds shook. We heard dishes in the kitchen falling on the floor," he said.

Another resident said the streets were quiet later on Sunday.

“No one is on the streets now. Everybody is at home and I cannot see any shops open. Everyone is scared that it may return,” said Rashid Al Saadi.

Seismic events measuring less than 3.5 are generally not felt, while those at 3.5 to 5.5 are felt, but rarely cause damage.

Those measuring 5 to 6 on the scale that regularly hit Iran's key fault line are commonly felt in Dubai and the Northern Emirates.

Events measuring 7 or more on the scale are regarded as “major”, including the devastating double earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria two weeks ago, killing more than 46,000 people.

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