- Safiu Kehinde
The Federal Government has sued for calm after an earth tremor rocked the parts of the Abuja capital city.
The tremor was reportedly felt in several buildings across Abuja on Tuesday in what was described by scientific analysis as a minor seismic event.
While confirming the development, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, called for calm as he maintained that no threat to live or properties was recorded during the incident.
Alake, in a statement issued on Wednesday by his Special Assistant on Media, Lara Owoeye-Wise, assured residents that government agencies were closely monitoring the situation and had already deployed proactive measures to safeguard lives and property.
He directed the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency to provide him with hourly updates on seismic developments around the nation’s capital for continuous assessment and possible escalation to other relevant government agencies.
Meanwhile, the NGSA’s Seismic Monitoring Station in Utako, according to the statement, disclosed detecting the tremor at exactly 11:23:27am, saying the earth movement originated from a depth of one kilometre and travelled four kilometres within five seconds.
The agency however allayed concern as it classified the incident as a light eventof I to II magnitude on the Mercalli scale, indicating that it was too weak to cause structural damage.
“The Nigerian Seismic Monitoring Station, Utako, recorded the earth tremor at exactly 11.23.27am, noting that it originated from a 1-kilometre depth and spread across a distance of four kilometres in five seconds.
“This is a characteristic feature of a surface earth tremor that poses no threat to lives and properties except for the discomfort of the shake and fear of possible destruction.” The statement partly read.
While reassuring residents that there was no cause for anxiety, Alake said the NGSA would continue to monitor the situation while residents went about their daily activities.