The biggest earthquake to hit the Western Australian Goldfields in 50 years has closed the nation's largest mine and left several historic buildings damaged.
The biggest earthquake to hit the Western Australian Goldfields in 50 years has closed the nation's largest mine and left several historic buildings damaged.
The shallow earthquake measuring 5.0 on the Richter Scale struck the twin cities of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, 600 kilometres east of Perth this morning.
Hundreds of mine workers were ordered out of mines after the quake and Australia's largest mine, the Super Pit gold mine at Kalgoorlie was temporarily shut.
Geoscience Australia said the quake, which occurred about 8.20am, was the biggest to hit the gold mining region in 50 years.
Previous earthquakes in the region have not exceeded 4.2 on the Richter scale.
Today's quake struckabout one to two kilometres southwest of the Kalgoorlie city centre, with most of the damage felt in Boulder.
Many of the damaged buildings are old pubs including the Golden Eagle Hotel where a balcony collapsed while the Recreational Hotel, often referred to as `The Rec' by locals, has cracks in every wall.
There were no injuries or damage reported from the mines and assessment teams are inspecting the sites to determine when crews could return to work but it's likely to be in a few hours time.
The Fire and Emergency Services Authority (FESA) said about a dozen buildings were damaged in Boulder, mainly on Burt, Moran and Piesse streets.
"A balcony has collapsed at the Golden Eagle Hotel on Lionel Street and there has been damage to the Rock Hotel on Burt Street," FESA said in a statement on Tuesday.
"There has been severe structural damage to Boulder Primary School including a ceiling collapse."
Students were moved to a safer part of the school and were collected by their parents, FESA said.
Firefighters were also called to a gas leak in Boulder.
Two people were treated in hospital for minor injuries at the Kalgoorlie Hospital.
Australian Workers Union (AWU) national secretary Paul Howes said first reports suggested that all AWU members were safe.
"AWU officials report that all our people have, it seems, been safely evacuated," Mr Howes said in a statement.
"We're not sure how long the mines will need to be shut down while damage is assessed.
"Certainly, we know now that at the open cut mine there has been some significant rockfalls, and we expect similar problems in the underground mines.
"The union will want to work co-operatively with the mine companies and the WA government to ensure everything is completely safe before miners are asked to restart operations.
"This incident is a huge reminder of the inherent dangers in our industry."
WA Premier Colin Barnett said the quake had caused some structural damage to schools in the region, which were closed for the day for safety checks.
Aftershocks, smaller than the main earthquake, are expected and could cause more damage to weakened structures, FESA said.
Residents in the city have been told to turn off electricity, gas and power and told not to use matches, cigarette lighters or naked flames because of potential gas leaks.
A number of roads in the town have been closed, and people have been told to beware of fallen powerlines and falling debris.
