EVEN as a 5.4 magnitude earthquake off the southern coast of Myanmar at 9.58 a.m. this morning (Aug. 21) led to high-rises in Bangkok swaying slightly, the public was urged to not panic as the structure of these buildings has not been affected, Manager Online and Amarin TV said.
The Department of Mineral Resources said that the quake, at a depth of 10 kms, was caused by the movement of Sagaing Fault in the Andaman Sea and even though people in Bangkok’s high-rises felt it, there is no need to evacuate as these buildings are structurally sound.
Myanmar was rocked by two more earthquakes after that with the first one measuring 3 on the Richter scale occurring at 10.15 a.m. with the epicentre being 170 kms from Mae Hong Son’s city district and the second of 3.8 magnitude taking place at 2.47 p.m. around 301 kms from Bang Mapha district of this northern province.
However, Professor Dr. Amorn Pimanmas, president of the Structural Engineers Association of Thailand, said today’s earthquake is much milder than the huge 7.7 quake that struck Myanmar on March 28 leading to the State Audit Building in Bangkok collapsing but it was closer to the Thai capital with the epicentre being 400-500 kms away.
Although this is not a severe quake it led to Bangkok’s high-rises swaying because the Thai capital is located on soft soil which can amplify quake waves three to four times. This amplification creates longitudinal waves, which directly impact tall buildings.
However, he emphasized that as estimated so far today’s quake has not affected these buildings’ primary structure but other architectural elements such as walls and light fixtures could be affected.
“The public should not panic yet,” Amorn said.
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A graphic image of an earthquake by Ελυαν_Νικόλαος from Pixabay
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