At two in the morning, a powerful earthquake in the middle Wheatbelt woke up people in Perth.

The short depth of the earthquake increased its force, causing beds to tremble and nerves to jangle across the city.

Wyalkatchem, which is 192 kilometres northeast of Perth, was the location of the 4.8 magnitude earthquake.

Because of its shallow depth, the earthquake was felt closer to the epicentre than it would have been if it had been deeper. Continues…