Frayed nerves, bad memories in southeastern city after pre-dawn earthquake

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Frayed nerves, bad memories in southeastern city after pre-dawn earthquake

Published: 30 Nov. 2023, 15:26 Updated: 03 Dec. 2023, 16:03

CHO JUNG-WOO
[email protected]

An official at the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) points to the location where the 4.0-magnitude earthquake on Thursday morning struck the southeastern city of Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, on a map displayed at the KMA building in Dongjak District, southern Seoul. [YONHAP]

An earthquake with a magnitude of 4.0 struck the southeastern city of Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, early Thursday, marking the second-strongest quake to hit the country this year.

According to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA), the earthquake struck 19 kilometers (11.8 miles) southeast of Gyeongju at 4:55 a.m. on Thursday. The area was approximately 20 kilometers from where the strongest tremor in Korea occurred in recent years, a magnitude 5.8 quake on Sept. 12, 2016.

Despite seven aftershocks detected through Thursday noon, no significant damage was reported from the earthquake, according to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety.

The Interior Ministry promptly raised the alert level of its Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, the nation's disaster command center, to Level 1 of the three-tier system. The ministry also raised its earthquake level to “vigilance,” the third-highest of its four-level warning system.

During an emergency meeting convened Thursday morning, the Interior Minister instructed officials to promptly assess the situation and take necessary action in cooperation with related ministries and local governments.

“The public concern over the earthquake is great as Gyeongju is a region that suffered damage and injuries from the 5.8-magnitude earthquake in 2016,” Interior Minister Lee Sang-min said, adding that, thankfully, no damage had been reported this time.

An image provided by the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) shows where the earthquake that struck the southeastern city of Gyeongju in North Gyeongsang was detected on Thursday morning. [KOREA METEOROLOGICAL ADMINISTRATION]

The earthquake reached Level 5 on the 12-tier seismic intensity scale in North Gyeongsang, meaning everyone could feel the tremble. The intensity level reached 4 in neighboring Ulsan, where many people indoors felt the quake or were woken by it, and 3 in South Gyeongsang.

The intensity level reached 2 in many other parts, including Gangwon, Daegu, Daejeon, North Jeolla, and North Chungcheong.

During an earthquake with an intensity scale of 3, people indoors — particularly those on upper floors — can feel the tremor, and parked cars shake. Level 2 is when a few people in quiet places and on upper floors can feel the shaking.

Two nuclear power plants — Wolsung and Shin-Wolsung — located in Gyeongju suffered no damage from the earthquake. The Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) said that while the quake was detected in the power plant area, it did not affect them, and all are operating normally. The KHNP added that it will closely monitor the situation while conducting safety inspections according to procedures.

Interior Minister Lee Sang-min on Thursday morning convenes an emergency meeting at Seoul Government Complex in central Seoul after a 4.0 earthquake struck the southeastern city of Gyeongju earlier in the day. [YONHAP]

However, the earthquake was powerful enough to startle many residents who remembered the strong quake seven years ago.

Residents living in the Ipcheon Village in Munmudaewang-myeon, Gyeongju, right next to the epicenter of Thursday's earthquake, were among those affected.

“I woke up and was startled as the floor shook,” 69-year-old Park In-sook told the JoongAng Ilbo. “I thought something very urgent was happening because the emergency disaster message alarm rang so loudly as I tried to check if my husband was fine.”

An emergency disaster message is sent nationwide when an earthquake with a magnitude of 4.0 or higher occurs.

Park said the earthquake was not as powerful as the devastating quake that hit Gyeongju and Pohang in 2016 and 2017 but was strong enough to frighten and wake her up early in the morning.

A resident checks the wall of a house in Ipcheon-ri, Munmudaewang-myeon, Gyeongju in North Gyeongsang, after the area was struck with a 4.0-magnitude earthquake early Thursday. [NEWS1]

Another resident, sleeping with her two daughters who visited her, said she was terrified as it was her first time experiencing such an earthquake.

“It sounded like a drill was piercing the land,” 59-year-old Park Mal-ja said.

Residents in areas near the village also felt a strong vibration.

“I was awake in the early morning, and suddenly I felt the floor trembling,” said 60-year-old Kim Suk-yang, who runs a restaurant in Gampo-eup, Gyeongju. “I immediately turned on the TV to check and the news reported an earthquake.”

The provincial government of North Gyeongsang and the city government of Gyeongju said they would conduct inspections on the area's cultural heritage sites and facilities as the aftershocks continue.

Thursday's earthquake marks the second-strongest to hit Korea this year. An earthquake in May reported offshore of Donghae, Gangwon, holds this year's record with a magnitude of 4.5.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO, KIM JUNG-SEOK [[email protected]]