UAE | General
Residents panic as mild tremor jolts parts of UAE
A mild tremor hit Dubai and some parts of the northern emirates at around midnight on Saturday, sending a wave of panic among the people living in high-rise buildings.
- By Aftab Kazmi, Bureau Chief
- Published: 15:39 October 26, 2008
Al Ain: A mild tremor hit Dubai and some parts of the northern emirates at around midnight on Saturday, sending a wave of panic among the people living in high-rise buildings.
The tremors, felt for few seconds, were caused by shockwaves coming from the epicentre of the earthquake in Southern Iran, said seismologists.
It was 5.1 magnitude earthquake that struck at 12:47am (UAE local time), according to the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC). The epicentre was located some 135km away from Ras Al Khaimah and the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas. It was some 45km deep inside the earth, making it less destructive.
Earthquakes with similar magnitude that come closer to the earth surface are normally more destructive to the infrastructure and human lives. The US Geological Survey recorded different readings of the earthquake saying it was magnitude 5 on the Richter scale that occurred some 57.3km deep in the earth.
Tectonic plate
A Dubai resident, Francis, said he felt the tremor while he was relaxing at his home in Karama. He said they were mild jolts. "I believe it could be an aftershock of the earthquake that occurred in Southern Iran," he said. Abdul Rasheed, a Sharjah resident, said he also felt the tremors. "I was watching television at that time and jumped up from my chair thinking it might get severe," he said. The jolts, however, faded away within a few seconds, he said.
The area around Bandar Abbas is seismological very active and has experienced dozens of earth quakes since September 11 this year, when a powerful 6.2 on the Richter scale struck some 43km in the west of Qishm Island. Its shocks were felt deep inside the UAE.
The epicentre is located on the Arabian Tectonic plate in the Arabian Gulf, said a UAE seismologist, adding that "most of the earthquakes felt in the emirates are actually associated with the earthquakes in Iran."
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