Dhaka, September 10 (UNB): Two moderate tremors with their epicentre close to the capital caused some degree of chaos and alert in and around the capital on Friday night.

The earthquake first struck at 10.40pm, and was followed less than an hour later, at 11.24pm, by a second tremor that measured 4.8 on the Richter scale, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

The epicentre of the earthquake was estimated to be around 46km southeast of Dhaka, which in geological terms, is very close to the capital, and hence the widespread panic it caused despite the low reading on the scale. 

It also happened at an underground depth of 14.1km, or 8.8 miles.

Residents in the capital's Gulshan reported glasses shaking on tables, while Araf Habib, a 28-year old resident Matikata, told UNB he was 'flipped off his feet' for the first time during an earthquake.

Customers at Floor 6, a popular Banani hangout, rushed out of the restaurant and took the flight of stairs to get out of the building.

"We were having sheesha, and all of a sudden the tables, almost everything started shaking. The sheeshas threatened to fall of but they knocked against each other and kept standing," said Navin Ahmed, one of the evacuees. 

Reports have been streaming in of the earthquake being experienced from Tongi, Jhenaidah, Gopalganj and Chandpur. 

There are no casualties reported as yet.