Earth tremor rocked various parts of Abuja, the nation’s capital city on Friday resulting into the spread of panic among the residents.
Friday’s incident followed similar ones of less magnitude in parts of the city on Wednesday and Thursday.
At Mpape, highbrow Maitama and other parts of the city, well-heeled citizens flung their gates open as they sped out of their luxury homes.
“We were really terrified when the earth shook violently. Those of us upstairs ran downstairs only to see those downstairs running upstairs,” said a politician who was at the Maitama home of a senator when the tremor occurred yesterday morning.
The politician, who pleaded anonymity, said that many home owners around Colorado Street in Maitama sped off to avoid further experience with tremors.
In Wuse area, Mrs. Florence Yesufu, who said that she and her children had fled from their Mpape home on Thursday night, told one of our correspondents that she and members of her brother’s family who were their hosts had to launch into intense prayer yesterday on learning from an acquaintance on the telephone about the tremor in Maitama.
But government agencies and notable individuals, including Senate President Bukola Saraki moved in swiftly yesterday to douse tension among the city’s residents.
“We have all been feeling the earth tremors in Abuja and surrounding areas over the last 48 hours. I know that many people are scared, but please, remain calm and vigilant,” Saraki said in a tweet on his Twitter handle, @bukolasaraki, as citizens recalled the shock they felt.
The Director General, Nigerian Geological Survey Agency (NGSA), Alex Nwegbu, said the tremor which began on Wednesday was between 3 and 3.5 magnitude on the Modified Mercalli scale, hence it was of low intensity as there were no visible cracks on walls and on the ground.
He urged members of the public to report any further incidents through NGSA’s emergency numbers 08035956056, 08032154825 and 08037000623.
Allaying the fears of residents, Nwegbu added that Nigeria will henceforth be able to detect and warn of future quakes because the government had just purchased six earthquake monitoring machines which he said would be distributed to the different geo-political zones in the country.
Addressing the issue at a press conference in Abuja yesterday, Nwegbu advised Nigerians to leave their houses when such quakes occur because the structure of such buildings could be compromised.
He said: “Earthquakes are ground movement responding to accumulation of stress, and when the stress becomes higher than the strength of the rock, it ruptures and the presence of rupturing sends waves along the earth crust. That is what results in the vibration which we call earth tremor or earthquake.
“When we got the report of the tremor in Mpape, we dispatched geologists and geophysicists on a fact-finding mission.
“The intensity of the tremor is estimated to be between 3 and 3.5 on the Modified Mercalli scale. There were no cracks on the walls or ground, which technically means it was an earth tremor of low intensity.
“We have conducted airborne magnetic survey of the whole country, and using it, we can establish zones of fractures and weaknesses.
“Based on the location of Mpape and its environs vis a vis the zones of weakness, you can understand the area has the predisposition of such tremors.
“But because we experienced the tremor in Mpape does not mean it originated in Mpape; it might have been triggered elsewhere.
“The present administration has done so much in assisting the agency in collecting geoscience data.
“We recently acquired six sets of earthquake monitoring equipment. We are presently in the process of deploying them within next month to different zones of the country in Abuja, Kaduna, Yola, Ibadan, Calabar and Awka.
“When this equipment are deployed, it will give us quick information of where tremor might probably occur to warn people beforehand.”
Nwegbu said there was absolutely no cause for alarm, adding that Nigeria is not situated at the plate boundary, hence the tendency to have violent earthquakes is very minimal.
“It is advised that once you start noticing a tremor, you move out of your house, because you can never underestimate how the structure of your house can be compromised. It could collapse.
“Presently we are collecting more data and this will help us in determining the true cause,” he said.
Earlier, the FCT Emergency Management Agency had issued a statement calling for calm and outlining steps that citizens should take when such incidents occur.
“We have been inundated with distress calls in our watch room as a result of earth shaking happening around Mpape and part of Maitama district of the Federal Capital Territory,” the statement said.
“Whilst appreciating the call from the public, the FCT emergency management agency (FEMA) wish to make the following statements:
“That the possible cause of the earth shaking might be as a result of earth tremor.
“That it is a sign of seismic movement within the earth. This is caused by sudden break along a fault line which results in sudden release of energy that makes the ground to shake.
“It is caused by stress in underground rocks and may be due to rock blasting and mining activities in an area.
“The residents are to note that there is nothing to panic about as there is no likelihood of any earthquake disaster in Nigeria as we are not in earthquake zone.
“Therefore, we are urging all residents to calm down and rest assured that the abnormal situation will soon stop.
The agency further gave out safety tips to be observed during such occurrences to avoid a disaster.
“Calm and do not panic. If you stay in a building, locate a safe room, drop down and take cover under desk or table and hold tight to it. You should stay away from windows and objects that may fall.
“If you are outdoor, find a clean spot away from buildings, trees and power lines.
“If you are in a car, slow down and drive to a clean place. Stay in the car until the shaking stops.”
Credit: thenationonlineng.net
