Strongest-ever tremor jolts Bangladesh
DHAKA SEPT 18: The strongest and longest ever earthquake since independence with a magnitude of 6.8 on the Richter scale rocked almost all parts of the country on Sunday evening triggering a panic wave among hundreds and thousands of people, many of whom got injured while trying to get out of multi-storied buildings. In capital Dhaka thousands of panic-gripped people came out on the sheets halting traffic for a long time. Cracks developed in a number of buildings due to the aftershock of the earthquake, and in many areas power went off and mobile network was disrupted.
The two minute long earthquake started at 6.42 pm with its epicentre 68 kim North West of Sikkim’s capital Gangtok, a place just 145 km Northwest of Bangladesh border.
Professor Mehedi Hasan Ansary of the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), a leading expert on earthquake told The Independent that Sunday’s earthquake was the strongest in the history of Bangladesh.
Explaining the magnitude of the earthquake, he told The Independent that if it was higher by some fractional points or of a magnitude of 7, the country would have faced a catastrophic situation.
We used to feel earthquake vibration off and on but those were for few seconds but this time it is for a longer period, causing panic. Almost all of us started running towards the door to get in the elevator but that was already full prompting many of us to take the stair case to get out of the building,” Hasan, who was in his office at 14th floor at Gulshan told this correspondent.
While getting down through the stairs we felt the vibration and I started thinking that soon the building would collapse, he added.
A teenaged girl was injured while she was rushing out of second floor of a six-storey building during earthquake in old part of Dhaka on Sunday evening.
The injured was identified as Nasrin, 14, daughter of Yasin, a resident of 27/1/A Kazi Reaz Uddin Road of Posta in Lalbagh. She was taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital.
An intense earthquake jolted the buildings and establishments of Rajshahi making the residents panicky this evening, reports our Rajshahi correspondentThe quake which lasted from 6-40 to 6-44 made several intense shock waves. Panicky people rushed to streets from their houses as their houses started to tremble. The earth quake was felt in nine upazilas as well as in neighbouring Naogaon, Natore and Chapainawabganj districts.
However, there was no report of injuries or any damage due to the earthquake from any where of the city and the upazilas.
Dr. Sarwar Jahan Sajol, Professor of the department of Geology and Mining of Rajshahi University said, people of Rajshahi never felt such a strong earthquake over the last 20 years.
Dr. Sarwar Jahan, Professor of the Institute of Environmental Science of Rajshahi University said, the quake was stronger than any other earthquake during the previous years. Such gradual increase of intensity of earthquake is ominous and indicates a devastating earth quake in future.
Rajshahi Meteorological Department failed to give any information about the earth quake. Hasan Ali, Officer of Rajshahi Meteorological Office informed that as there was no seismograph at Rajshahi Met Office, it was not possible to measure the intensity of earthquake.
In Pabna at least 11 people were injured while attempting to get out of multi-storied buildings, reports our Pabna correspondent.
In Kushtia a student of Islamic University was inured after he jumped out of third floor of his dormitory.
Reports received from different areas of southern region including Barisal city said that a light tremor jolted their areas for at least two minutes from 6.42 pm.
After observing abnormal vibrations of the floors hundreds came out of their houses.
No causality was reported till filing this report in the late evening, but panic gripped the people.
Chandpur Sadar and its seven other upazilas also felt the quake at around 6.40 p.m. Sunday, reports our Chandpur correspondent.
The quake jolted twice for a few seconds making the people panicky who went out of their buildings. Least people were injured the incident.
Asalamualaykum,
I was in the hospital at that time when the tremor was felt and I was on the 6th floor, At first I thought that I was not feeling well and then I saw everything moving including the walls and when I opened the door I saw a sight ..I saw people running like crazy some people taking patients with their saline fluid and trying to hurry as they could. It just amazed me as to what fear of death can do.. I made dua and Alhamdulillah it stopped after a while but it left a reminder to everyone I just hope people do take time to realize.