Second Earthquake In Hours Strikes Northern Israel, No Injuries Or Damage Reported

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — A minor earthquake shook the northern region of Israel Sunday afternoon, the second in a number of hours. The quake measured 3.5 on the Richter scale according to the Israel Geological Survey, and  was centered 16 km south of Tiberias, near the town of Bet Shean. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage. The entire eastern border of Israel and the upper Jordan valley are situated on a fault line known as the Syrian-African rift which has caused significant earthquakes in the past.

In Beit Shean, employees were evacuated from city hall as part of the standard procedures during an earthquake. A school was also evacuated in nearby Afula. Bet Shean residents are considered that the two small quakes are harbingers of a much larger quake.

“We felt a short earthquake just like it during the night. We left the building and waited a few minutes. It is very surprising that there was another earthquake and there is concern there may be a bigger one soon,” residents told the Walla news site.

The previous earthquake occurred during Saturday night and measured 3.7 on the Richter scale, with the epicenter close to the site of the second one. The quake was felt around the entire northern region.

“It went on for a relatively long time. It moved things around in my house,” a Haifa resident told Walla news after the first quake. “My desk was moving by itself for four or five seconds. The whole house, the bed, the room shook.”

“My whole body was trembling with fear. I started grabbing my kids to get outside. The bed really moved. All the windows were shaking,” a woman from Tiberias said.

Municipal authorities reminded residents of earthquake protocols, with anyone who might be in danger told to head for an open space. Those who cannot leave their building should enter their bomb-proof secure room, leaving the doors and windows open, or go into the stairwell and head down. If neither of these are options, they should shelter in the corner of a room.

Those who are outdoors at the time of a quake should stay away from buildings, trees, power cables and any items that could fall. Anyone close to a beach should move away at least one kilometer away from the water, or make sure they are on the fourth floor or above in case of flooding or a tsunami. Anyone driving at the time of a quake should stop at the side of the road and wait inside the vehicle until the end of the earthquake, but should avoid stopping under a bridge or at a junction.

The last major earthquake to hit the region was in 1927 — a 6.2-magnitude tremor that killed 500 people and injured 700 — and seismologists estimate that such earthquakes occur in this region approximately every 100 years.

In 2018, the state ombudsman warned Israel is woefully unprepared for a major earthquake.