Chittagong and its adjoining areas are highly vulnerable to earthquakes. Dr Mohammed Jahangir Alam, vice-chancellor (VC) of Chittagong University of Science and Technology (CUET) and city planner, said: “Most of the buildings in the port city lack quake-proof measures and no other precautionary arrangements to face any such natural disasters”. “As a result,
earthquake
Tremor jolts Bangladesh
A moderate earthquake measuring 5.6 on the Richter scale jolted some parts of the country, including Dhaka and nearby areas, yesterday morning. No incident of casualties or damage due to the quake that was felt in Dhaka at 08:21:15am has been reported. Mahmudul Kabir, meteorological assistant of Dhaka Seismic Centre told
Tremor jolts Bangladesh
A moderate earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale yesterday jolted the capital and other parts of the country. A good number of structures in different areas of the country shook heavily due to the tremor that hit around 6.41pm when people out to the street in panic. However, there was no immediate report of damage or
Earthquake contingency plans remain on paper
Contingency plans for earthquake preparedness have not been implemented yet, despite predictions that a major earthquake can hit the country anytime. Citing a recent series of earthquakes in Bangladesh, experts have warned that a major earthquake in crowded cities like Dhaka can cause terrible human tragedy. Although two years back the government had chalked out ... Read more
Tsunami watch lifted after hours of panic
2 Strong Quakes Hit Indonesia Tsunami watch lifted after hours of panic A tsunami watch declared after two major earthquakes off the coast of Indonesia’s Aceh province has been cancelled, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PWTC) said yesterday. Two hours after the quakes — one with a magnitude of 8.6, the other measuring 8.3 — ... Read more
Relief after scare
Bangladesh Jolted Relief after scare Two major earthquakes and a series of strong aftershocks near Indonesia’s Sumatra Island yesterday jolted various parts of the country, triggering widespread panic among people. Immediately after the first quake, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre (PTWC) and Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) issued tsunami alert for at least 20 coastal countries ... Read more
Animals predict quakes
Animals may sense chemical changes in groundwater that occur when an earthquake is about to strike. This could be the cause of bizarre earthquake-associated animal behaviour, scientists say. Researchers began to investigate these chemical effects after seeing a colony of toads abandon its pond in L’Aquila, Italy, in 2009–days before
Distance saved fragile Dhaka
Sikkim quake a warning for the unplanned city Even the vulnerable and unplanned buildings in Dhaka sustained Sunday’s Sikkim earthquake, as it wakened by the time it struck Bangladesh. The capital felt a “weak” (3.0 to 4.0 on Richter scale) jolt while the northern districts shook “lightly” (4.0 on Richter scale)
Troubles brewing in silence
Quake toll rises to 71 Indications are strong for major earthquakes to strike South Asia, geological experts observed yesterday, a day after a 6.9 magnitude quake in Sikkim rattled the region, killing 71 people in India and Nepal. A number of below-surface cracks, geologically known as faults, have made the region the most quake-prone in ... Read more
6.8 Sikkim quake jolts Bangladesh
Causes widespread panic; no major loss A 6.8 magnitude earthquake jolted the country yesterday evening, prompting thousands of panic-stricken people to rush out into the street from their homes. The quake that was felt for nearly two minutes from 6:40:47pm had its epicentre in Sikkim, India. It was the strongest tremor to have hit the ... Read more
Bangladesh 6th ‘high-risk country’
Ranks disaster watchdog A leading disaster watchdog has ranked Bangladesh as the world’s sixth “high disaster risk country” in terms of its exposure to typhoons, earthquake and tsunamis. The German-based United Nations University (UNU) Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) in its ‘World Risk Report-2011’ said Bangladesh ranked second in its risk index in