Two Quakes Felt In Northern Israel Within 24 Hours

Second earthquake in 24 hours felt in northern Israel

JERUSALEM POST STAFF

An earthquake measuring 3.6 on the Richter scale was recorded by the Geological Survey of Israel (GSI) in northern Israel on Sunday, less than 24 hours after an earthquake measuring 3.8 on the scale shook the area on Saturday. A magnitude 2.9 tremor was also recorded by the GSI on Saturday.

The Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) recorded the Saturday quake as a magnitude 4.1 and the Sunday quake as a magnitude 3.9.

The epicenters of both quakes were located slightly south of the Kinneret.

According to residents' reports, the second earthquake was felt in Tiberias, Kiryat Shmona, Beit She'an and Haifa.

Earthquakes measured between 3 to 3.9 on the Richter scale are considered to be minor and while they can be felt by many people, they do not usually cause damage. An earthquake between 4 to 4.9 on the scale can be felt by all people in the area and can cause minor damage.

Testimonies from local residents to the EMSC related that they felt strong shaking during the first quake on Saturday. A resident of Tiberias wrote "The entire mamad (reinforced room) shook, including the refrigerator inside it. The shaking went through my entire body for about seven seconds."

"The entire house shook," one resident of Kibbutz Ashdot Ya'akov wrote to the EMSC. "We felt like a ship on waves. We ran outside. It lasted for about five to ten seconds." Ashdot Ya'akov is located about 2 kilometers from the epicenter, according to the EMSC.

"My computer desk is moving," a resident of Kibbutz Ashdot Ya'akov said in a testimony to the EMSC about the second quake on Sunday. "It's relatively weaker compared to the quake yesterday."

The quake was also felt in parts of Jordan, as noted by testimony given to the EMSC.

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