Dr. Md. Zillur Rahman
Earthquake Specialist & Professor,
Department of Disaster Science and Climate Resilience,
University of Dhaka
Dr. Md. Zillur Rahman stated—
“According to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department, the epicenter of today’s earthquake was in Madhabdi of Narsingdi, and its magnitude was 5.7 on the Richter scale. As geologists, we try to identify whether there is any fault line near the epicenter of an earthquake. The Shitalakkhya River flows through Narsingdi, and it is a linear fault-controlled river. It is assumed that today’s earthquake originated from this river’s fault line.
This is not the first time Bangladesh has experienced a moderate earthquake. We have previously witnessed earthquakes measuring around 5.7 as well. However, today’s quake was felt more strongly than usual, which created widespread panic. In reality, there is no significant reason to be overly alarmed by a magnitude 5.7 earthquake. Bangladesh lies in a moderately earthquake-prone region; therefore, earthquakes of moderate intensity are not unusual here.”
Recalling the earthquakes of Manikganj in 1885 and Srimangal in 1918, he further cautioned—
“There remains a continued risk of experiencing earthquakes of similar magnitude in the future. Keeping such risks in mind, Bangladesh developed earthquake-resilient building codes. If these codes are properly followed, the extent of damage during major earthquakes can be significantly reduced.
The problem is that people tend to panic when an earthquake occurs, but this sense of urgency does not remain when constructing buildings. As a result, even today’s moderate earthquake has caused cracks in many structures and tilted some buildings. Additionally, due to a lack of awareness, casualties have also occurred. Unless people are adequately educated and made alert, the extent of damage and number of casualties may increase even during moderate earthquakes like today’s.”
— Organization of Disaster Management (ODM)
