The KwaZulu-Natal government has called for calm while it verifies reports that an earth tremor was felt in several parts of the province, including Pietermaritzburg.

Residents in areas such as Athlone, Hayfields and Ashburton, reported having felt the earth shake, while others claimed their houses shook shortly after 09:00 on this morning.

“This one was quite strong, it felt like the whole house would collapse,” Sipho Maphanga said on Facebook.

Volcano Discovery confirmed the 4.5 earthquake and said the epicentre was 41 km north of Kokstad.

This morning’s tremor comes a day after residents in Durban and Pietermaritzburg claimed to have felt the earth move in what was later described as a 4.6 magnitude earth tremor.

The provincial Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) department on Sunday morning called for calm as it followed up on the reports.

“Cogta has noted reports by the public and a number of agencies on the minor earthquakes that took place yesterday and Sunday morning in parts of the province. The department has established contact with the Council for Geoscience, which determines the extent of tremors and potential impacts in the affected areas,” the department said.

The department was liaising with disaster management teams in the affected districts to assess whether there was any damage to infrastructure. So far no injuries or fatalities have been reported.

Cogta MEC Sihle Zikalala said: “We wish to call for calm among all communities. The disaster management machinery is monitoring the situation and will be available for deployment where necessary.”

A week ago, there were reports that a 4.2 magnitude tremor was felt in areas around Johannesburg, including Westonaria.