5.9 magnitude quake hits southwest of Africa

An earthquake measuring 5.9 on Richter Scale struck southwest off the African continent on Monday (local time), the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said.

The epicentre of the quake, which occurred at around 17:59 (UTC), was registered at a depth of 10.0 kilometres, about southwest of the continent in the Atlantic sea.

Earthquakes in the region is somewhat rare though they are frequently experienced in certain parts of the West Indies; but an earthquake of deep focus in this region is certainly a more rare occurrence, if not entirely without precedent.