The seismic situation around the world remains dynamic and alarming at the beginning of the month. As of 6:10 a.m. Bulgarian time (the time of events is tracked in real time), Japan is dealing with a severe humanitarian situation.
More than 8,000 people (according to official data from local authorities, the number of people accommodated in shelters exceeds 9,200) remain stranded in evacuation centers in Kumamoto Prefecture after the devastating 7.1 magnitude earthquake. At the same time, shortly after 3:00 a.m. local time this morning, Egypt was shaken by an earthquake with a magnitude initially estimated at 4.7 by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC) and revised to 5.4 – 5.6 by international and local institutions.
Hellish heat in Japan: “Double disaster“ for evacuees
In Kumamoto prefecture on the southern Japanese island of Kyushu, the situation is critical, but not because of new collapses, but because of weather conditions. The official death toll from the earthquake has reached 36-38 people. The main problem at the moment is the extreme heat wave, turning evacuation zones into a real ordeal.
- Scale of evacuation: Over 9,200 citizens are accommodated in 229 temporary shelters or are sleeping in their cars.
- Lack of air conditioning: Many of the gyms and school buildings do not have working air conditioners due to the power outage.
- Extreme temperatures: Forecasts for the day predict temperatures in the area to reach 40 degrees Celsius.
- Infrastructure collapse: Nearly 72,000 households and businesses are left completely without access to drinking water.
The Japanese government and Kumamoto prefectural governor Takashi Kimura have begun urgently delivering portable air conditioners and generators to reduce the risk of mass heatstroke among the elderly population. According to english.news.cn, the situation is being described by authorities as a “double disaster“ – a combination of destructive seismic force and relentless summer weather.
Egypt Earthquake: Panic in Cairo and Suez
Early this morning, at exactly 3:00 am local time (coinciding with Bulgarian summer time), a strong earthquake woke up the inhabitants of Egypt. The epicenter was registered about 37-38 kilometers north of the strategic city of Suez, at a shallow depth of 10 kilometers.
Although the first automatic data from EMSC indicated a magnitude of 4.7, the National Research Institute for Astronomy and Geophysics of Egypt (NRIAG) and the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ) corrected the magnitude of the quake to 5.2 and 5.6 on the Richter scale, respectively.
The earthquake was felt extremely strongly in the capital Cairo, in Giza, along the Red Sea coast (near Sharm el-Sheikh) and even in neighboring countries such as Israel. The Egyptian Red Crescent immediately activated its emergency plans in the affected governorates. The Egyptian Ministry of Health put ambulances and rescue services on maximum alert. According to information from Reuters.com, at this time there are no official reports of collapsed buildings, serious property damage or injured people. Authorities urged citizens to avoid entering buildings with visible cracks in the structure.
Seismologists remind that while Japan is located in the Pacific “Ring of Fire“ and is prepared for frequent and strong tremors, Northeast Africa feels such earthquakes less often, which makes the extraordinary preparedness of local structures in Egypt key to preventing incidents.