Earthquake in Chipinge, Chimanimani

By Luthando Mapepa in Chipinge

An earthquake with a magnitude of 3.8 was felt in Chipinge, Chimanimani and surrounding areas around 5am today.

Chipinge District Meteorological officer, Ms Lydia Masengu said preliminary location shows that the earthquake occurred at Latitude -21.378 S and Longitude 34.657E. The magnitude was determined to be 3.8 and the epicentre is in Mozambique.

No reports of damage were received so far and the Met Department is having enquires to determine its intensity in the locality and to determine the exact areas it was felt.

The Zimbabwe-Mozambique eastern border area shows high earthquake activity.

Most of the earthquakes that occur in this region are due to natural plate tectonics and this is attributed to the East African Rift System (EARS) which extends into Mozambique.

Manicaland is a seismically active region, evidenced by the many moderate to large earthquakes occurring each year. The Herald