New Delhi: Strong earthquake tremors were felt in Delhi and the neighbouring region on Tuesday. The quake lasted for at least 15 seconds, with people seen rushing out of their homes and offices. The quake struck at 2:28 pm with the epicentre in Nepal at a place 148 km east of Pithoragarh in Uttarakhand, the National Centre for Seismology said.
"Earthquake of Magnitude:5.8, Occurred on 24-01-2023, 14:28:31 IST, Lat: 29.41 & Long: 81.68, Depth: 10 Km, Location: Nepal," the NCS said. While there was no confirmation of any damages right away, several social media users in the national capital and its adjoining areas confirmed they felt strong tremors.
"It was scary as the tremors hit," said Shantanu, who resides in a high-rise tower in Noida. Amit Pandey, a Delhi resident, said, "I was on the fifth floor of one of the blocks at the Civic Centre. I felt a growling noise beneath my feet and a mild shake when the tremor passed through perhaps." Many others in the towering Civic Centre, the headquarters of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, felt the tremors which hit when the House proceedings were underway.
There were no immediate reports of any damage in Nepal. Apart from Delhi, the tremors were felt in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand. Netizens took to social media to share their experience with many uploading videos of swinging objects and shaking ceiling fans. The earthquake comes a day after magnitude 4.8 quake hit Manipur on Monday evening.
Why do earthquakes happen?
According to 'Michigan Tech', a website maintained by Carol Asiala, Research Scientist/Engineer, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences, most faults in the Earth’s crust don’t move for a long time. But in some cases, the rock on either side of a fault slowly deforms over time due to tectonic forces.
"Earthquakes are usually caused when underground rock suddenly breaks and there is rapid motion along a fault. This sudden release of energy causes seismic waves that make the ground shake. During and after the earthquake, the plates or blocks of rock start moving—and they continue to move until they get stuck again. The spot underground where the rock first breaks is called the focus, or hypocenter of the earthquake. The place right above the focus (at the ground surface) is called the epicenter of the earthquake," the website reads.
