The Nigerian Geological Survey Agency (NGSA) says there is
no need for residents of the federal capital territory (FCT) to panic over
recent earth tremors.
Residents of Mpape and Katampe communities in the FCT
recently expressed fears following earth tremors that reportedly began on
Saturday.
An earth tremor is a relatively small or short-lived
movement of the earth’s surface. It is caused by the same forces that produce
earthquakes.
In a statement on Wednesday, Olusegun Ige, NGSA
director-general, said the agency monitored the tremors and found them to be
low.
He added that the tremors do not pose any threats.
“The Monitoring Station (NGSA-5) at Katampe has been capturing
several significant ground motions with high moment magnitudes (Mw) in the past
five days, beginning from September 13, 2024 till date,” the statement reads.
“Only one mild event was recorded on September 13th. Six of
these events were captured on the 14th of September, while over 21 events were
captured on the 15th with higher intensities.
“More than twenty
events were recorded on the 16th of September. The intensity and frequency of
the tremor appear to increase from the 13th to 16th September. There are a few
weak events recorded today, 17th September.
“Preliminary analysis of the waveforms showed that the
sources of the ground motions are less than 5 km away from the monitoring
station.
“NGSA team also visited the affected areas for on-the-spot
assessments of the events. From the accounts of the residents of the affected
areas, the observations by the NGSA team, and findings from earlier
interpretations of the airborne geophysical data over the area and adjoining
areas, the following conclusions were made:
“The tremors are a result of accumulated stress along the
identified faults and released seismic energy, which may have traveled through
associated fractures to areas where the tremors were felt around the FCT.
“There are multiple
epicenters associated with the recent tremor. Most of the epicenters are
located northeast of the NGSA-5 Seismic Station around Mpape axis, while a few
are located southwest of the Station around Katampe axis.
“The intensities of the tremors are weak to light, ranging
from III – IV on the Modified Mercalli Scale, and pose a very low level
threat.”
The agency added that it is closely monitoring the
situation.
“The residents of Mpape, Katampe, Maitama, and other areas
where the tremors were felt are advised not to panic as the tremors can be
generally described as low,” the statement adds.
“The Agency is
keeping a close monitoring of the situation and will provide updates as may
become necessary.
“The general public should also be aware that the NGSA
Seismic Stations are being monitored in real time to ensure prompt alerts on
any major event.”
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