BC

A small earthquake has rattled nerves and a few dishes on Southern Vancouver Island but caused no damage.

The quake, with a preliminary magnitude of 3, was centred 13 kilometres northeast of Sooke, near the southern tip of the island.

The quake struck about 3:20 Wednesday afternoon.

Dirk Meissner, a reporter at The Canadian Press, was startled by the quake while at work at the B.C. legislature.

Meissner says it sounded like barrels were being rolled over the roof, but nothing in the building moved.

Natural Resources Canada, which released the news of the quake, says there are no reports of damage and none would be expected.