5-magnitude earthquake in Kon Tum shakes central and Central Highlands provinces

At 11:35, Mr. Phung Quoc Cuong, who lives in Kon Tum City, about 80 km from the epicenter, was sitting in his office and saw everything shaking, many furniture and vases on the table fell over. The homeowner panicked and ran outside, shouting to the neighbors to be on guard. Many households near Mr. Cuong's house also said that their houses shook slightly at this time.

Similarly, people in Pleiku City, Gia Lai, more than 100 km from Kon Plong District, felt the earthquake. Mr. Vo Thai Hau, Yen Do Ward, said he was on the second floor of his house and felt the shaking, the door banging lightly for about 5 seconds. "I felt confused and scared because I didn't know what was happening," Mr. Hau said.

In Quang Ngai City, about 150 km from the epicenter, people were also surprised to feel their houses shaking slightly. Mr. Nguyen Hung said that at first when he felt his house shaking, he thought it was a large truck passing by, but when he ran out, he didn't see it. A moment later, he saw friends and relatives texting online to discuss the aftershocks of the earthquake.

In areas located about 100-200 km away from the epicenter such as Quang Nam and Da Nang, people also felt the earthquake aftershocks. Many people in Hai Chau and Son Tra districts (Da Nang) said that while having lunch, they saw some items on shelves and tables in their houses shaking for about 10-15 seconds and moving slightly.

Mr. Nguyen Xuan Anh, Director of the Institute of Geophysics, said the earthquake occurred in Kon Plong district, Kon Tum province at 11:35 a.m., with a level 2 natural disaster risk. The agency is monitoring aftershocks.

"From midnight to noon today, the Kon Tun area recorded three earthquakes. The first one at 3:12 a.m. had a magnitude of 3.4 and a focal depth of 8.1 km; the second one at 8:35 a.m. had a magnitude of 3.3 and a focal depth of 8.1 km," said Mr. Anh.

The number of earthquakes in Kon Plong district (Kon Tum) and neighboring areas occurs frequently, with a tendency to increase in strength from April 2021 to present. In 2021, 169 earthquakes were recorded with a magnitude greater than 2.5. From April 15 to April 18, 2022, 22 earthquakes occurred in the area, the largest of which was 4.5 magnitude.

According to the Institute of Geophysics, in the nearly 120 years before this time, the Kon Plong area recorded only 33 earthquakes, of which two were larger than 3.0 magnitude. Commenting at the 2022 natural disaster prevention meeting, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Anh said that the cause of the earthquake, in addition to being related to geological faults, is also worth paying attention to the water storage of hydropower plants, because this is the reason for the earthquake in the Tranh River hydropower area (Quang Nam).

In the coming time, Kon Plong may still have earthquakes, with a maximum magnitude of 5-5.5, or even stronger.

Earthquake hazard levels are divided into five levels. Earthquakes with magnitude 5-5.9 are at the medium level, corresponding to impacts that can cause moderate to severe damage to poorly designed structures. No damage to minor damage to well-designed structures. Everyone feels the earthquake. Can be fatal depending on the circumstances of the impact.

Since the beginning of 2024, the country has had a total of 155 earthquakes greater than 2.5 magnitude, including 142 in Kon Tum.