NE NEWS SERVICE
AHMEDABAD, JUNE 14
An earthquake of 5.5 magnitudes shook parts of Gujarat on Sunday night but no major damage to property or life has been reported as per preliminary assessment, the state government said.
The epicentre of the tremor was located near Bhachau in Kutch district, officials said.
A preliminary statement by the National Centre for Seismology (NCS) said the quake occurred at 8.13 p.m. at a depth of 10 km in Kutch district, approximately 120 km from Rajkot.
મુખ્યમંત્રી શ્રી વિજયભાઈ રૂપાણીએ રાજ્યમાં આવેલા ભૂકંપના આંચકાઓને પગલે રાજકોટ, કચ્છ અને પાટણ જીલ્લાના કલેકટરો સાથે તાત્કાલિક ટેલિફોન દ્વારા વાતચીત કરીને પરિસ્થતિની જાણકારી મેળવી હતી. pic.twitter.com/qlZvb9em6I
— CMO Gujarat (@CMOGuj) June 14, 2020
According to the map on the NCS website, the quake struck around 85 km from Bhuj, the site of a devastating 7.7 magnitude earthquake on January 26, 2001, that reportedly killed over 20,000 people and left over 1.5 lakh injured. The latitude and longitude of the epicentre have been verified as 23.3 N and 70.4 E respectively.
An aftershock of 3.1 magnitude was felt six minutes later, with its epicentre located 25 km northwest of Rapar in Kutch district, the Institute of Seismological Research (ISR) said.
गुजरात में भूकंप के तेज़ झटके; रिक्टर स्केल पर 5.5 आंकी गई तीव्रता
8 बजकर 13 मिनट पर महसूस किए गए झटके; कच्छ ज़िले में 10 किमी की गहराई पर था भूकंप का अधिकेंद्र#Earthquake #Gujarat pic.twitter.com/8QputJ9azS
— DD News Gujarati (@DDNewsGujarati) June 14, 2020
Moderate to strong tremors were felt in large parts of the State, including Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Morbi, Kutch, Jamnagar and the north Gujarat region. In Ahmedabad, people came out of high rise flats following tremors.
While several parts of Gujarat felt the quake, its intensity was said to be more in Patan and Rajkot districts neighbouring Kutch.
Chief Minister Vijay Rupani held telephonic conversation with collectors of Kutch, Rajkot and Patan districts that are located close to the epicentre of the quake.
– પાટણમાં મેઘરાજાની સવારી
– ભારે ઉકળાટ બાદ મેઘરાજાના આગમનથી લોકો ખુશ
– મેહુલિયો મન મૂકીને વરસતા ધરતીપુત્રોમાં આનંદની લાગણી pic.twitter.com/y0g1JwLyhx— DD News Gujarati (@DDNewsGujarati) June 14, 2020
He directed the collectors to report damage, if any, caused due to the quake and activate disaster management cell, said a release from the CMO.
He also instructed the Disaster Management Cell’s control room to be operational and be on standby.
Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel said a quake of such intensity was felt after a long time.
“Entire Saurashtra and north Gujarat regions, including Ahmedabad, felt the impact of the quake with 5.3 magnitude. The after shock was of a lower intensity. There is no report of any major damage to life and property from any area after the quake,” he said.