Two mild earthquakes shook Himachal Pradesh’s Chamba district within just over an hour early Wednesday, causing panic among residents. This has once again drawn attention to the hill state’s vulnerability to seismic activity.
According to the National Centre of Seismology, the first tremor, measuring 3.3 on the Richter scale, was felt at 3:27 am. Its epicenter was near Sanwal in Salooni subdivision, Chamba, at a depth of 20 km. Around an hour later, at 4:39 am, a comparatively stronger quake of magnitude 4.0 struck the same area, this time just 5 km deep, making it more noticeable on the surface.
Seismologists say Chamba, like most of Himachal, lies in seismic zone V, the highest risk zone. That is why the region often experiences mild to moderate tremors, though bigger quakes cannot be ruled out.
This was not the first time in recent weeks. On July 11, a 3.5 quake hit near the Chamba-Kangra border, followed by a 4.1 quake in Churah on July 26. Just two days ago, on August 18, Kangra district saw a 3.9 quake near the Chamba border.
Also Read: Earthquake of 3.2 magnitude shakes Faridabad, Haryana
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