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Walter Nyamukondiwa Kariba Bureau
A moderate 3,7 magnitude earthquake hit Hurungwe, Kariba and surrounding areas yesterday, with the rattling effect being widely felt, although there were no reports of damage. The Seismology Section of the Meteorological Services Department triangulated the epicentre of the earthquake which occurred at around 3pm on longitude 16.446S and latitude 29.691E in Hurungwe.

A statement released by the Seismology Section showed that the earthquake was felt by people in Kariba, about 100 metres away from the epicentre.

“A magnitude 3,7 on the Richter scale earthquake was experienced in Hurungwe on the 3rd of July 2019 at 1301 UTC local time is 1501 hours,” reads the statement.

“The earthquake was felt in Kariba and surrounding areas. It was felt by some people at Kariba Met Office as well as surrounding areas.”

There was an after shock at 6.32pm.

This comes about a month after a 3,9 magnitude quake hit Kariba with its epicentre in the Matusadonha area of Kariba District.

Kariba residents, including motorists, reported experiencing the tremor which lasted for nearly a minute and could be felt indoors and in moving vehicles.

Those interviewed said the tremor had greater intensity and lasted longer than the previous one.

“We felt the impact even in the car. The earthquake occurred around 3pm,” said Mr Cephas Shoniwa, a resident of Kariba. The Zambezi River Authority (ZRA), which manages the Zambezi River, Lake Kariba and related infrastructure also confirmed the earthquake, adding that preliminary findings showed it had no effect on key structures on the lake, including dam.

“Our engineers don’t have technical details yet, but they have done an inspection and are coming from the dam wall now, everything is fine,” said ZRA spokesperson Mrs Elizabeth Karonga.

“The magnitude of the tremor was not huge to cause panic. The ZRA continues to monitor the situation.”