Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, April 11 An earthquake of magnitude 4.7 struck parts of the Hingoli district in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra on Saturday morning, while tremors were also felt in parts of neighboring Nanded and Parbhani districts, officials said.
There have been no reports of immediate loss of life, they said.
Some houses and community halls in the Pangra Shinde village developed cracks, Hingoli Collector Rahul Gupta told
Officials from the Nanded district cited a reading from the National Centre for Seismology, which calculated the earthquake's magnitude at 4.7, recorded at 8:45 AM. The epicenter was located at a depth of 10 kilometers below the ground in the Shirli village in the Vasmat taluka of the Hingoli district, they added.
Tremors were also felt in neighboring Nanded city and rural areas, as well as in the talukas of Ardhapur, Hadgaon, and Himayatnagar, and in parts of the Parbhani district, officials said.
While no loss of life has been reported from any of the affected districts so far, there have been reports of minor structural damage.
"I have received images showing cracks in houses and community halls in Pangra Shinde village in the Hingoli district. Our teams are heading to the site to assess the situation and record the exact extent of the damage," Hingoli Collector Gupta said.
Local authorities have urged citizens to remain calm and follow safety protocols. Emergency response teams have been placed on standby in Nanded and Parbhani as a precautionary measure.
Authorities have advised people living in houses with tin-sheet roofs to remove heavy stones placed on top for support and instead secure the sheets with bolts as a safety measure. In case of any further tremors or unusual sounds, residents are advised to immediately move to open spaces and inform the administration by calling the emergency helpline, the Nanded district administration said.
"When I was sitting in my college staffroom doing my work, I suddenly felt a tremor. As I heard a different sound, I was confused. Then I realized it was a mild earthquake," said a college teacher in Nanded.
Meanwhile, tremors of 3.4 magnitude were also felt for a few seconds in the Rajura tehsil in the Chandrapur district in the state's Vidarbha region during the day.
According to the National Centre for Seismology website, the tremors were felt for 12 seconds in the Hardona village, which was the primary focal point in the district. The epicenter was near Karimnagar in Telangana, the website informed.
There was no report of loss of life or damage to property, said resident deputy collector Dagudu Kumbhar.