There Is Nothing to Fear in Armenia: Seismologist on the Earthquake Registered in Azerbaijan and Its Consequences

What happened yesterday at midnight in Azerbaijan was an earthquake of medium or even below average strength. This was stated in an interview with Auroranews by Sergey Nazaretian, the chief expert of the Seismic Protection Territorial Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and a professor and Doctor of Geological Sciences, while discussing the earthquake recorded in Azerbaijan on July 4 shortly after midnight.

He emphasized that there is no need for concern in Armenia from a seismic point of view related to the Azerbaijani earthquake. “The hypocenter of this earthquake was quite deep, which is why the earthquake was not felt strongly,” the seismologist said, adding that the deeper the tremors are recorded in the earth, the weaker they are felt on the earth's surface. The reason is the attenuation of the shaking intensity over distance.

The seismologist recalled the powerful earthquakes that struck Turkey in February and emphasized that although no collapses or destructions were recorded following the earthquake in Azerbaijan, many people in Baku left their homes due to hysteria and panic, with some even sleeping on the streets.

“Considering the severe consequences of the earthquake that occurred in Turkey on February 6, people have been cautious,” the seismologist said.

In response to the question of whether the earthquake in Azerbaijan could affect Armenia, the seismologist provided reassuring statements to the public, saying: “There is nothing to fear from a seismic point of view. Stay calm and without earthquakes.”

It should be noted that just hours ago, a 2.8 magnitude earthquake was recorded in the Armenia-Georgia border area, 12 km southeast of the village of Bavra, at a depth of 10 km. The tremors were felt in the villages of Bavra, Ghazanchi, and Tavshtut in the Shirak region with a strength of 2-3 points. The shaking intensity in the epicentral zone was assessed at 3-4 points.