New Delhi: Hours after a 6.2 strong earthquake shattered central Italy on August 24, a more powerful quake struck Myanmar.
Tremors were felt in northeastern India as well as Bihar, Odisha and West Bengal in the 6.7 magnitude quake that occurred a little after 4 pm.
There were no immediate reports of human casualties or damage to property in the earthquake that had its epicenter 58 km deep below the earth’s surface at Chauk, a small town in northcentral Myanmar, according to the National Centre for Seismology, a unit of Ministry of Earth Sciences.
The US Geological Survey put the intensity of the quake at 6.8 on the Richter scale.
At least 38 people were killed when a 6.2 magnitude earthquake rocked central Italy after 3 am on August 24.
In India, tremors were also felt in several parts of northern India including Gurgaon, Manesar and Bhondsi in Haryana, authorities said.
Panic stricken people in Kolkata, Patna and Guwahati were seen rushing out of their homes and offices into the streets immediately after the quake struck.
Director of Bihar’s Met office AK Sen said some old buildings developed cracks following the quake but there was no immediate report of any casualty or damage to property.
In Odisha, tremors were felt in places like Cuttack, Paradip, Jagatsinghpur, Bhadrak, Balasore and Keonjhar, news agencies reported quoting officials.
Offices and colleges in Kolkata were evacuated, people there talked of “horrible shaking” and said the tremors lasted at least 10 seconds.
“We felt the tables were shaking,” said a young college student.
“Everyone ran away from the classroom, we were like Oh My God” said her friend.
Metro services in Kolkata were halted after the tremors; they have resumed now.
Wednesday’s quake in Assam followed two other tremors that shook the state on Tuesday. Earthquakes measuring 3.1 and 5.5 on the Richter scale had jolted Assam at 5.30am and 7.41am on Tuesday.
Earlier this week, an earthquake epicentred in Haryana and registering at 3.7 on the Richter scale was felt in parts of Delhi.