A small earthquake hit the state of Uttarakhand towards the end of Sunday night, and this created panic among the population, making them rush out of their homes as residents experienced tremors in various districts. National Centre of Seismology (NCS) also confirmed that the quake was of magnitude 3.6 on the Richter scale and it took place at 12.45 a.m. with its epicentre in the Bageshwar district in the Kumaon region.
Early reports suggest that the tremors were experienced in Bageshwar, Almora, Pithoragarh and the surrounding areas. Lots of people who were woken up by the shaking rushed to the open spaces, where they feared more intense aftershocks. Even though no casualties or structural damage have been announced yet, the state administration has put disaster response teams on alert and told the local authorities to be on close watch.
District Magistrate of Bageshwar, Anand Bhatt, said that the entire emergency services, including the police, fire and medical services, were on standby. At this point, no injuries or damage are reported, and at all sites at risk, our teams are doing inspections, especially hilly slopes and old buildings, he said.
According to the experts of NCS, Uttarakhand is located in the Seismic Zone IV and V, which are some of the most prone areas to earthquakes in India. The state lies on the collision boundary between the Indian and the Eurasian tectonic plates, which results in the state being highly vulnerable to the frequent low- to medium-intensity earthquakes. As much as such tremors are frequent in the area, they usually act as reminders that they should prepare against other powerful tremors.
The Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA) has been encouraging people to remain composed and adhere to the normal procedures of an earthquake. They are also encouraged not to go to weak structures, not to take the elevator during tremors and to go to open areas where possible. The governments have also informed the people who have moved to landslide-prone areas to be vigilant because even the slightest tremors can make the slopes unstable.
Residents were sharing their stories and said that they heard the doors and windows rattling for several seconds, and then everything was quiet again. We were already past midnight when we felt the shaking of the ground. All of them ran out panicking, said Almora residents.
Although there was nothing significant in terms of harm that the quake inflicted, authorities insisted on the need to be on high alert. Since the Himalayan belt has not stopped seismic activities, the government is strengthening its disaster management structures to protect citizens from any occurrence in the future.
