Quake leaves cracks in houses in Nanded district

Aurangabad: An earthquake measuring 3.7 on the Richter scale rocked the region bordering Nanded and Yavatmal districts at 9.12pm on Friday, leaving cracks in the walls of around 45 homes in Nanded and triggering panic.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the epicentre of the earthquake was near the Nanded-Yavatmal border, 10km below the ground.

Tremors were felt in south-east Marathwada region, including parts of Nanded, Hingoli and Latur districts, along with bordering areas of Telangana state for a few seconds.

The residents of many areas in Nanded district and nearby areas were preferring to sleep outside their homes fearing aftershocks.

Addressing the media on Saturday, Nanded district guardian minister Ramdas Kadam said a total of 481 villages from Nanded district felt the earthquake.

“As per initial reports, 40 homes in Kinwat taluka and five in Mahur taluka developed cracks due to the earthquake. The district authorities have been asked to assess the actual damage and take necessary steps,” he said.

As per the official report, as many as 24 villages in Yavatmal district also felt the earthquake. Most villages (13) were from Umarkhed taluka.

Experts at Swami Ramanand Teerth Marathwada University (SRTMU), Nanded, said it was the first major seismic activity reported from the bordering area of Nanded-Yavatmal districts of Maharashtra.

T Vijay Kumar, assistant professor at the geophysics (seismology) department of school of earth sciences of SRTMU, said the earthquake of 3.7 magnitude in this region has taken many by surprise.

“We have devices installed at Nanded, Killari (Latur) and Hingoli to record seismic activities in the region. The latest earthquake in Yavatmal district is a first-of-its-kind major seismic activity recorded in recent history. The seismic activity will be studied on different laid down parameters,” he said.

Madhusudan Palamkar, a retired school principal from Kinwat, said earthquake was unheard of in the region. “We only remember the 1993 earthquake at Killari in Latur district. It is reason for worry to know that the epicentre was on the bordering area, which is close to us. We pray that the natural activity was a one-off event,” he said.

Meanwhile, disaster management authorities have appealed to citizens to take necessary precautions in case of an earthquake. “Some earthquakes are actually foreshocks and a larger earthquake might occur. Minimize movements to a few steps so that one can reach a nearby safe place and stay indoors until the shaking stops,” officials said.

Officials said those caught indoors should drop to the ground and take cover by getting under a sturdy table or other furnitures and hold on until the shaking stops. If there is no a table or desk near you, cover your face and head with your arms and crouch in an inside corner of the building,” the authorities said.