Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], February 27 (ANI): An earthquake of magnitude 5.3 on the Richter scale, located 188 kilometres from Dhaka, struck on Friday afternoon, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said, while the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) reported the tremor as magnitude 5.4. The quake was reported around 1:30 PM IST and recorded southwest of the BMD Seismic Centre in Dhaka’s Agargaon.
The USGS gave the epicentre at latitude 22.451°N and longitude 89.139°E, with a depth of 9.8 kilometres. Tremors were felt across several parts of Kolkata and adjoining areas of West Bengal, prompting residents to evacuate homes and office buildings and gather in open spaces.
Swagata, a Kolkata resident, recounted that the sofa and fan in her room shook and a bottle fell from a table, after which her household rushed downstairs to open areas.
Shallow earthquakes—those occurring between 0 and 70 km depth—generally cause stronger ground shaking at the surface than deeper quakes because seismic waves travel a shorter distance to reach the surface. For classification, the USGS divides earthquake depths into shallow (0–70 km), intermediate (70–300 km), and deep (300–700 km).
Earlier the same day, the National Center for Seismology (NCS) reported a magnitude 2.7 quake in Namchi, Sikkim. The NCS said the tremor occurred at 12:02:43 IST at a depth of 5 km, with the epicentre at latitude 27.36°N and longitude 88.37°E. (ANI)
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