5.5 magnitude earthquake jolts Dhaka, parts of country
USGS says the magnitude was 5.5, while German Research Center for Geosciences says it was 5.8
A 5.5 magnitude earthquake at a depth of 10km jolted Dhaka, and parts of the country at 9:35am today (2 December).
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the epicentre of the earthquake was located 10km east-northeast of Lakshmipur's Ramganj upazila.
Meanwhile, quoting the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ), Reuters reported the earthquake's magnitude was 5.8.
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Earlier, the Android Earthquake Alerts System reported the magnitude to be 5.2, and the epicentre in Cumilla.
The quake was at a depth of 10km (6mi), as per earthquakelist.org. The maximum intensity of the quake was "VIII or Severe" on the Modified Mercalli Scale and based on scientific estimates by the US Geographic Survey (USGS), this level can cause moderate to heavy damage.
People took to social media to report the jolt in parts of Bangladesh. Many Dhaka residents came out on the streets in fear during the tremor.
No damage was reported at the time of filing this report.
6 quakes over 5 magnitude recorded since January
With today's 5.5 magnitude tremor which shook Dhaka and nearby areas, Bangladesh has witnessed six incidents of earthquakes over magnitude 5 since the beginning of 2023.
Earlier on Monday (2 October), the country experienced a 5.4 magnitude earthquake originating from Sherpur at around 6:45pm.
Earlier this year, on 11 September, Sylhet was struck by another earthquake measuring 5 in magnitude.
Another seismic event of 5.3 magnitude shook Sylhet on 14 August.
The country felt the impact of a 5.0 magnitude earthquake originating from Golapganj in Sylhet, affecting Dhaka and other districts on 16 June.
The first seismic activity recorded this year was on 23 January with a 5.1 magnitude earthquake originating in Sylhet.
Earlier in 2022, Bangladesh encountered three earthquakes surpassing a magnitude of 5 richter scale.
According to earthquakelist.org, the strongest recent earthquake of the past 10 years near Bangladesh occurred on 4 January 2016 05:05am with a magnitude of 6.7 and struck 180 kilometers (112 mi) east of Sylhet, at a depth of 55 km.
