MADRID: An earthquake measuring 4.4 on the Richter scale shook El Hierro island in Spain's Canaries on Wednesday, the strongest tremor to hit the territory since an undersea volcanic eruption there last month.
The earthquake struck at 6:10 pm (1710 GMT) in the Atlantic off the town of Frontera, population 4,000, the National Geographical Institute said on its website. It was measured at a depth of 23 kilometres (14 miles).
El Hierro was struck by a total of 77 earthquakes on Wednesday, including five that were strong enough to be felt by local residents, the institute said.
Experts advised that the possibility of a new volcanic eruption could not be confirmed or ruled out, said a spokeswoman for the Canary Islands regional government.
"It could happen but in principle it is not imminent," the spokeswoman said.
No evacuations were under way.
The Spanish authorities sent tents, toilets and a canteen to the island to lodge 2,000 people in case of an evacuation, the regional government said in a statement.
When combined with Red Cross supplies, a total 2,500 evacuees could be sheltered if needed, it said.
Some 500 residents and tourists were evacuated from the village of La Restinga after a 4.3-magnitude quake and undersea volcanic eruption on October 10 but have since returned home.
Restinga remains on red alert for a possible eruption, the highest point on a three-level warning scale.
The previous volcanic eruption on the Canary Islands struck on nearby La Palma in 1971.
El Hierro, which means iron in Spanish, is the smallest of Spain's Canary Islands, located in the Atlantic off the coast of Morocco. It is home to some 11,000 people.
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