Residents spend sleepless night inside cars

Fujairah/Ras Al Khaimah: Residents of Masafi, where Saturday evening's earthquake was most strongly felt, have described how panic and fear forced many people to spend the night outside their homes.

The earthquake was felt in all areas of the East Coast as well as some parts of Ras Al Khaimah.

The first, and major, tremor was recorded at 10.20pm on Saturday, followed by a number of aftershocks of lesser magnitudes.

Many residents recalled the last time a major earthquake hit the area on March 11, 2002.

Fear

Al Badi Mohammad Ahmad, a Sudanese administration manager at Masafi's sports club, says although the quake was not as strong as it was in 2002, it was still scary enough to have kept him and his family out until after midnight.

"We, like other families, went out straight away after we felt the quake and did not feel it was safe enough to return until after midnight." said Al Badi. "We were not able to sleep as we were still fearful."

Security man, Shihab Udheen Palapuzha, said the first thing he noticed was the loud scream of a woman coming from a nearby house.

"At first, I thought the screams were due to some domestic disturbance but soon noticed the buildings were shaking and people coming out of their homes in panic." Official sources said there were no reports of any damage to life or property.

Mohammad Bin Ganem, General Director of Fujairah Police, said all proper procedures were followed as soon as the quake reports came in.

He said: "Police vehicles went out to patrol all areas and all emergency and civil defence vehicles were on full alert but thankfully there have been no reports of any damage."

In Ras Al Khaimah, Civil Defence received several calls from panicked residents reporting the tremor and the aftershocks. Lieutenant Colonel Mohammad Jaber, who heads the Civil Security Section at the department, said the reports started pouring in at the department around 10.15pm with the first tremor.

Frantic calls

He added that the majority of the calls were reported from the remote areas, including Al Ghail, Adhan, Shouka, Kadra Wadi Sfini and Al Munaei.

Most residents ran out of their homes carrying their children. They spent a couple of hours on the streets and then returned to their homes.

Seeking refuge

Saeed Musabah, Tribal Chief of Shouka, said residents felt another stronger earthquake would occur. Most residents of the southern areas spent the night in the homes of friends and relatives in areas considered safe.

Saeed Al Mazroui, a national from Wadi Sfini, said the strong tremors were felt everywhere in the southern areas.

He said the police and civil defence personnel visited the southern areas to reduce tension and calm down the panicking people.