A minor earthquake was recorded in Palghar district on Saturday morning.
Officials from the seismology department of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said the earthquake was of magnitude 3.5 on the Richter scale and was recorded at a depth of 10 km.
An official from the IMD said the earthquake occurred at 9.17 a.m. at Latitude 20.033 North and Longitude 72.910 East. “As the magnitude of the quake was 3.5, it can be classified as a minor earthquake,” the official said.
Dr. Naresh Rana from the seismology department said the tremors were a part of the earthquake swarm that Palghar district has been experiencing since November last year. An earthquake swarm is a pattern of several small earthquakes that occur in a brief time window. Palghar district has experienced over a dozen such quakes since last year.
“Generally, the damage caused depends on the depth of the earthquake. If it is a shallow quake, the damage is more as compared to that of deeper quakes. Palghar is likely to experience more such tremors till the end of the monsoon. However, the magnitude can’t be determined now. Usually, swarm earthquakes don’t cause severe destruction,” Dr. Rana said.
