Jan 4 quake epicentre : Evidence points to Maranching
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, February 11 2016:
Scientists and locals of Maranching have found possible evidence which suggest that the epicentre of the powerful earthquake that shook the State on Jan 4 was at Maranching.
Addressing reporters today at Hotel Nirmala, scientist of North Eastern Space Application Centre, M Somorjit said that scientists of Manipur Remote Sensing Application Centre and North Eastern Space Application Centre have found evidence that the epicentre of the earthquake of Jan 4 was at Maranching.
As per the US Geological Survey, the real epicentre of the earthquake last month is located in Maranching range at aerial distance of about 29 Kms from Imphal.
The epicentre is at 24.834 N latitude and 93.656 E longitude, 55 (+/-1.5) km deep and 860 metres above mean sea level, Somorjit said.
The team of scientists went to the place yesterday along with the locals to assess the situation, he said.
Locals said that they heard abnormal sounds made by the animals in the nearby jungles the night before the earthquake took place, he said.
The volume of the water that flows in the nearby river increased after the earthquake even though there was no rainfall, Somorjit said.
The place is said to be the epicentre of the 5.8 Richter scale earthquake of 1965, 4.7 Richter scale earthquake of Sept 16, 1944, 5.6 Richter scale of April 5, 1999, 4.5 Richter scale of Aug 26, 2003 and the 6.8 Richter scale of Jan 4 this year, said scientist L Ramananda.