The tremor felt by people in Groningen province on Tuesday was not an earthquake, the KNMI meteorological office says on Wednesday.

The acoustic quake was centred north of the Wadden Island of Ameland, the KNMI told Nos television.

A spokesman for the defence ministry told Nos television the noise was likely to be an F16 fighter jet breaking the sound barrier. The jets were training over the North Sea at the time.

Dozens of people, some in Friesland, reported feeling the tremor.

Debate

MPs are today due to debate the government’s plans to reduce gas extraction from under Groningen following a string of earthquakes.

The government is also planning to spend millions of euros strengthening the local economy and compensating home-owners whose properties have been damaged by subsidence.

However, locals and many MPs do not think the government is going far enough.