Jordan | Jordanian earthquake expert: Hama earthquake series is an unstoppable force

2024-08-15 2024-08-15T10:40:34Z

Arab Weather - Dr. Ahmed Al-Malabeh, Professor of Geology, Environment and Climate Change at the Hashemite University of Jordan, said on Tuesday that "the series of earthquakes in Hama, Syria, is an unstoppable force."

He explained that after the "Great Anatolian Earthquake", the Arabian Plate began to return to stability, as the latent energy in the great earthquakes in Anatolia was released, which led to a calming of the situation in Antakya.

Professor Al-Malabeh added that an earthquake measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale struck east of the Syrian city of Hama at around midnight, with its epicenter at a depth of 10 kilometers, according to global observatories, including the Jordanian and German ones. No deaths were recorded, but residents of Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Cyprus felt the earthquake.

Al-Malabeh also pointed out that this earthquake was preceded by another earthquake measuring 3.9 degrees within three hours, and was followed by four aftershocks within minutes, ranging in magnitude from 3.9 to less than 3 degrees.

Analysis of the activity of the Arabian plates after the great Anatolian earthquake

Al-Malabeh explained that after the great Anatolian earthquake, the Arabian plate began to return to stability, as the latent energy in the great earthquakes in Anatolia was discharged and the situation in Antakya calmed down. He added that the presence of extended faults in the region near the end of the Arabian plate in the northern part, in addition to a collision zone between the Arabian and Eurasian plates, and an ophiolite zone in the Kasab and Ras al-Basit areas in the cities of Latakia and Jableh, led to weak to moderate seismic activity 3 kilometers from the Zghrin area in northern Syria, which caused several tremors and earthquakes, most notably a 5.5-magnitude earthquake.

For his part, Eng. Abdullah Asem Ghosheh, Vice President of the Arab Consulting Engineering Organization and member of the Jordanian Building Council, commented on the earthquake that struck northern Syria and was felt by some citizens in Jordan. He explained in a post on Facebook that an earthquake measuring 5.4 degrees was recorded, followed by less powerful aftershocks, stressing that these magnitudes are not worrisome and do not cause damage.

Ghosheh pointed out that the real problem begins when the tremor exceeds 6 degrees or more, while weak tremors are considered a natural phenomenon that occurs frequently in our region for various reasons.

He also pointed out that the Jordanian state took many preventive measures after the earthquake in Turkey and Syria two years ago, including updating building codes, especially the earthquake code, and ensuring that projects under implementation adhere to earthquake-resistant design.

Ghosheh concluded by saying: “An earthquake is a natural phenomenon that is a vibration or a series of tremors of the Earth’s surface that occur within a few seconds, as a result of the movement of the rocky plates in the Earth’s crust. The center of the earthquake is known as the focus.”