bangladesh earthquake

Earthquake caused devastation in Bangladesh on Friday. Strong earthquake tremors were felt in Dhaka and many parts of the country. The intensity of these tremors was 5.7. 10 people died in this earthquake. At the same time, more than 100 people have been injured. Meanwhile, let us understand how Dhaka has become the epicenter of earthquake.

According to experts, Dhaka is now becoming a new center of intense seismic activity. According to data from Dhaka University, 10 earthquakes were recorded in the last 12 years, whereas only 6 major earthquakes occurred in the last 485 years.

The epicenter is also changing

The Earthquake Observatory of Dhaka University has made a list of earthquakes of the last 485 years. If we look at the past years, more shocks are being felt in the last 12 years. Besides, the location of the epicenter (center of the earthquake) has also changed. Earlier it used to happen mostly in Sylhet, Chittagong and Cox’s Bazar. Now it has shifted towards Manikganj, Narayanganj, Mymensingh, Dohar and Narsingi.

Seismologist Professor Syed Humayun Akhtar told Samakal (Bangladeshi media), the Indian plate is sinking under the Burma plate underground and no one knows when it will be free. However, the risks are likely to increase in the future.

5 major earthquakes in 61 years

Between 1869 and 1930, in these 61 years, 5 major earthquakes occurred in this region, whose intensity was more than 7 on the Richter scale. Many experts consider this a dangerous sign. Of the 60 earthquakes recorded after 2024, 31 had an intensity between 3-4. Outside Bangladesh, similar earthquakes were felt in Nepal, Bhutan, India and China, highlighting that the entire region is now under unstable geological stress.

Earthquake threatens buildings

The problem is that such warnings have been issued for many years. But, practical steps were not taken. Two-thirds of Dhaka’s 6 lakh buildings are not in compliance with the rules. The condition of new buildings is also the same. There has been repeated talk about enforcing building codes, but in reality it is almost ineffective. Emergency preparedness is also weak.

A list of buildings at risk was prepared and 3,200 buildings were identified, but no action has been taken since then. Lakhs of people in the city do not know how unsafe buildings they are living in.

“Earthquakes of magnitude 7 occur every 100-150 years”

BUET Professor Mehdi Ahmed Ansari reminded that after the earthquakes of Cachar (1869), Srimangal (1918) and Durgapur (1923), cracks were formed in these areas. Even small shocks are shaking them now. According to them, earthquakes of about magnitude 7 occur once every 100-150 years. Bangladesh stands deep in that cycle and 25% of Dhaka’s buildings are not earthquake-resistant.

Millions of people at risk from earthquake

The figures from the Urban Resilience Project raise further concerns. In 1885, an earthquake of 7.5 magnitude occurred on the Madhupur Fault. After this, no major earthquake occurred for 139 years. If now an earthquake of 6.9 magnitude occurs on the same line, then at least 8 lakh 64 thousand buildings of Dhaka may be destroyed. More than 2 lakh people can die if an earthquake occurs during the day; This number can exceed 3 lakh at night.

Housing and Public Works advisor Adilur Rahman Khan said, in fact, there is no coordinated national policy to deal with earthquake risk in this country. The Disaster Management Department has described 13 areas as earthquake-sensitive. The three districts of Sylhet’s Jantapur and Chittagong Hill Tracts are particularly at risk. These are hundreds of kilometers away from Dhaka, yet an earthquake of 7-8 magnitude can push Dhaka towards a serious disaster.

Lack of safe places in Dhaka

Professor Adil Muhammad Khan of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning of Jahangirnagar University said that there is a huge shortage of safe and open spaces in Dhaka city in case of a disaster like a major earthquake. People get scared and run towards safe places, but open spaces are not available in most areas. Dhaka has been built and expanded in such a way that in most areas there is no vacant place to which people can run during an earthquake and feel safe there. At the same time, what was there gradually changed.

He said that according to the basic rules of urban planning, every area should have a playground or open space at walking distance, which can be used as a community space in times of disaster. In densely populated areas this distance should be within 500 meters.