Hong Kong residents are glued to televisions throughout Hong Kong to get more information about the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck Sichuan province yesterday and was felt by many Hongkongers. CNS

Minor as it might have been, there was a bit of rumbling in Hong Kong yesterday following the devastating afternoon earthquake in Sichuan province.

According to the Hong Kong Observatory, the quake was the farthest one in recorded history to have been felt in Hong Kong.

The observatory recorded earth motion at 2:31pm, three minutes after the massive quake struck Sichuan. About 20 Hongkongers reported feeling the tremor.

According to reports, the observatory said this earth motion was equivalent to scale 3 in the Modified Mercalli Scale, and was centered at Sichuan, 1,450 km northwest of Hong Kong.

The shaking in Hong Kong may have felt similar to that of a truck passing by.

Citizens in the districts of Sham Shui Po, Kowloon Bay, Ma On Shan, Sha Tin, Tai Wai, Causeway Bay, Taikoo Shing and Yuen Long said they felt the shaking. The majority of them were in the upper stories of tall buildings.

Some said they saw hanging objects or furniture shaking and felt dizzy.

A worker in an industrial building in Yuen Long said he felt the building shake for two minutes. Police, firemen and Towngas arrived to check on the safety of the building.

Workers there were evacuated, and nearby residents also reported feeling the quake and seeing small objects move.

Academics said it wasn't surprising for Hongkongers to feel the earth shake.

Chan Lung-sang, an earth sciences professor at the University of Hong Kong, said the earthquake occurred along an active north-south seismic belt in China, and it could affect a radius of up to 800 km.

He expects aftershocks will occur in Sichuan over the next few months.

Meanwhile, China Travel Service (Hong Kong) said four tours comprising 116 people had set off to Chengdu, Leshan and Jiuzhaigou.

The travel agency confirmed three tours were safe, but it could not contact the remaining one, which should have flown back to Hong Kong from Chengdu yesterday afternoon.

Tung Yao-chung, executive director of the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, did not receive appeals from local tours in Sichuan.

The Immigration Department said 14 local residents sought help and 25 inquired as to their relatives' conditions in the striken areas.

The Civil Aviation Department said 10 flights arriving to and departing from Hong Kong needed to be conceled or delayed.

The Hong Kong Red Cross Association said it hadn't been able to contact the Red Cross offices in the affected areas, but it is rushing to provide support.

(HK Edition 05/13/2008 page2)