The location of the earthquake that struck in the Central Highland province of Kon Tum on Tuesday, with the red star marking the epicentre. — Photo courtesy of the Earthquake Information and Tsunami Warning Centre

KON TUM — An earthquake with magnitude 4.0 and focal depth of about 8.1km occurred at noon on Tuesday in Kon Plông District, the Central Highlands province of Kon Tum.

The Earthquake Information and Tsunami Warning Centre under the Institute of Geophysics said that the quake happened at the co-ordinates 14.824 degrees North Latitude – 108.273 degrees East Longitude.

At present, the centre is continuing to monitor for seismic activity.

Along with the recent earthquake, from the beginning of last month till now, eighteen small earthquakes have occurred in Kon Plông District.

The day with the most earthquakes was February 7 with nine ones. The highest magnitude earthquake was magnitude 4.0.

In January this year, eight earthquakes with magnitudes ranging from 2.5 to 2.8 occurred across the country. Of these, six happened in Kon Plông District.

The Institute of Geophysics said that earthquakes in the district had occurred frequently and continuously since 2021 until now.

This area recorded the highest magnitude earthquake in recent years of 4.7, which occurred on the afternoon of August 23, 2022.

Director of the institute Nguyễn Xuân Anh said that since June 2021, the institute had sent officers to the area to set up more monitoring stations to better understand the phenomenon. They will also issue prompt warnings when dangerous seismic events occur.

Normally, earthquakes with a magnitude of under 5.0 were considered small and rarely cause significant damage, he said.

Earthquakes of 5.0-6.0 degrees or higher are medium ones and pose a risk of natural disasters; while those from 6.0 are major earthquakes with high risk of natural disaster damages.

Anh said that local people should stay calm and follow instructions of local authorities and competent agencies. They also need to reinforce houses and equip themselves with knowledge of earthquake response techniques. — VNS