Repeated earthquakes in Romania

The 5.5-degree earthquake in Vrancea has again brought to the limelight the issue of volcanic activity and the safety of hundreds of earthquake-prone buildings in Bucharest, as well as the slow pace of consolidation works on such buildings.

This is not the first earthquake to be recorded in the area this year, but the 7th exceeding 4 degrees on the Richter scale since March.

It is, however, the biggest in Romania in the last 4 years.

It was followed by a series of aftershocks that caused no casualties and material damage, but which did generate a lot of panic, especially in Galati County, which is very close to Vrancea, and where hundreds of minor tremors have been recorded over the last 2 weeks.

"There is striking coincidence between the tremors in Galati and the earthquake in Vrancea. As far as we know, there should be no connection between the two phenomena. The coincidence, however, is too big, and it remains to be studied and analysed", said Mircea Radulian, the director of the National Institute for Physics of the Earth.

Meanwhile, the experts sent to the area say there is a lot of tension in the Earth’s crust, which has reactivated a fault line in the volcanic area.

The phenomenon cannot be prevented, but there are signs that its intensity is decreasing.

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