Grímsey island off northeast Iceland is still being shaken by a series of earthquakes which have lasted since noon on Wednesday. Last night the number of earthquakes had surpassed 1,100. The strongest quake measured 4.8 on the Richter scale.

Yesterday, the strongest earthquakes were between 3.3 and 3.5 points. According to Morgunbladid, the quakes all originate 14 to 16 kilometers east of Grímsey, which is a well-known epicenter among seismologists.

Halldór Geirsson at the physics department of the Meteorological Office said the activity is steadily slowing down, but earthquakes may still rattle the region next week. The earthquakes have not caused any damage.

A series of brisk earthquakes shook Iceland’s northernmost inhabited island of Grímsey yesterday so that objects on shelves rattled and plates inside cabinets vibrated. The largest quake was 4.8 on the Richter scale.

Local resident Konrád Gylfason told Morgunbladid that he did not believe the earthquakes had caused any damage. People were frightened, though, and during some of the strongest quakes people with children had run out of their homes. Some of the earthquakes were followed by rumbles.

Gylfason had been outside in the sea cliffs at the time of the earthquakes to catch puffins with pocket nets. He said a considerable thud had followed the largest quakes and the birds had flown out of their nests in the cliffs.

The epicenter of the earthquakes was 16 kilometers east of Grímsey. The first quakes were detected at noon and the last in the evening. Inhabitants on the mainland near Dalvík could also feel the vibrations.

Seismologists counted more than 300 earthquakes and 21 were larger than 3.0 on the Richter scale. According to Halldór Geirsson at the physics department of the Meteorological Office, the epicenter is in an area where earthquakes originate frequently.