Earthquake in Slovakia. Geologist: One fault may have been rejuvenated

a magnitude of 5.0 occurred on Monday at 20:23. The epicenter was located 22 km northwest of the town of Humenné – (EMSC). “The currently estimated depth at which the earthquake occurred is approximately 4 km, which explains the intensity of the tremors,” explained Prof. Andrzej Konon from the Faculty of Geology at the University of Warsaw in a comment sent to Next.gazeta.pl.

Earthquake in Slovakia. What threat to Poland?

“It is a mountainous region, located within a large tectonic unit, the so-called Magura nappe, belonging to the outer Magura nappes, which is part of the Carpathian orogen. This area was shaped as a result of Alpine movements, the youngest stages of deformation of which can be estimated at about 10-11 million years ago.” – added.

Location of the epicenter of the earthquake with a magnitude of 5.0 on October 9, 2023 in Slovakia against the background of a geological map Graphics: geology.sk

The analysis of the earthquake focus conducted by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) indicates that this fault is a contraction fault, “which means that it was activated as a result of forces acting horizontally, as a result of shortening (compression) of a given fragment of the rock mass in the direction approximately northeast – southwest” – said prof. Andrzej Konon.

Can such shocks threaten Poland? “Earthquakes in the Carpathians, with a magnitude of about 5, are not an everyday phenomenon, nor are they a direct threat to Poland,” said the geologist. However, he added, earthquakes with a magnitude above 6 are much more dangerous, “because they are catastrophic for cities and infrastructure facilities.”

Earthquake in Slovakia. Damaged gas network

After yesterday’s earthquake in Slovakia, 15 buildings were put out of use. The most serious damage was reported in the town of Dapalovce, near the epicenter of the quake. Due to damage to several houses, over 40 people had to use alternative accommodation. The condition of damaged buildings will be assessed by building supervision inspectors.

As a result of the earthquake, gas, water and heating networks were damaged in several places. There were also power outages. The Ministry of Internal Affairs confirmed that the Jaslovské Bohunice and Mochovce nuclear power plants are operating without any problems. Yesterday’s earthquake was one of the strongest in the history of Slovakia. The tremors were felt in the eastern and central parts of the country, as well as in Poland, Romania and Ukraine.

Earthquake in Slovakia. There have been 26 earthquakes in 10 years

Slovakia is a country with low seismic activity. Over the last 10 years, from January 1, 2013 to October 10, 2023, 26 seismic shocks occurred in this country, of which 15 had a magnitude below the perceptibility limit. The strongest phenomenon (apart from the described earthquake) from the region of eastern Slovakia during this period had a magnitude of 3.7 and occurred on April 23, 2020 – .