The Croatian Seismological Service recorded more earth tremors of magnitude 3.8 on the Richter scale on Thursday, January 7, 2021 at 12.06 hrs. The epicenter was located 6 kilometers southwest of Petrinja near the village of Strašnik.
.
The earth shook violently again in the Petrinja region. The EMSC (European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre) reported a quake of level 5.0 on the Richter scale. Other buildings were damaged in the process. According to local reports, the quake lasted about 10 seconds. A spokesman for the emergency services said, “We were lucky that no one was working on any of the roofs at that time, otherwise there would certainly have been casualties again.” About the actual damage, including personal injuries, is not yet further known in the extensive area.
Due to the Corona pandemic, the earthquake in the Petrinja and Sisak region quickly disappeared from the headlines in Germany, and partly also in Austria – but the considerable damage remained and continues to make life difficult for the inhabitants of the Croatian earthquake region. Therefore, the SeaHelp editorial team points out here again the precarious situation after the earthquake and tries to draw a short balance.
Significant damage to residential buildings
As reported from the damage reports of the region, so far about 9000 buildings in the earthquake area are damaged, according to initial data, 1,800 can no longer be inhabited, most are likely to face demolition. Structural engineers who inspected the damaged houses after the earthquake released 4,500 houses for further use after an initial structural inspection, but extensive repair work must also be carried out on these properties.
Region also affected by war
Thirty years ago, the region of Petrinja and Sisak were considered one of the main sites of the armed conflict in the former Yugoslavia, the country that ultimately gave birth to the state of Croatia. During the war, a large number of residential and commercial buildings in this area were already destroyed. However, 30 years later, many of the current earthquake victims are once again facing the ruins of their existence.
More earth tremors every day
The regions affected by the earthquake are Petrinja, Glina, Sisak and Lekenik. Here the earth still does not come to rest. After an earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale, aftershocks of between magnitude 3 and 4 continue to occur, significantly complicating rescue and cleanup efforts and causing further damage to the already pre-damaged building fabric from the previous violent earth tremors.
State of emergency declared – Croatian government takes over coordination
The Croatian government has meanwhile declared a state of emergency for the region affected by the earthquake and has taken over the coordination of measures on site. This should also clear the way for further aid from the EU.
Donations still urgently needed
The Croatian Red Cross (HCK) says it has distributed 287 tons of food, 200,000 liters of water and 60,000 hot meals to residents affected by the earthquake in just under a week. In addition, more than 38 million kuna in monetary donations from 62,480 donors have so far been received into the HCK’s donation account.
You can donate cash for the people affected by the earthquake in Petrinja and Sisak through the following account:
IBAN: HR6923400091511555516
BIC ( SWIFT) code: PBZGHR2X
Bank : Privredna banka Zagreb d.d., Radnička cesta 50, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia.
Beneficiary: Croatian Red Cross, Ulica Crvenog kriza 14, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Description: For the victims of the earthquakes in Croatia.
Austria helps earthquake victims
Needed on the ground, according to the relief organizations working on the ground, more housing containers. In addition to extensive aid deliveries, partly on private initiative, the Feuerwehr Kalsdorf also participated in the support of the earthquake victims with a delivery of 83 residential containers for use as emergency shelters as part of its disaster relief mission. They were delivered to the earthquake region by vehicles of the Austrian Federal Fire Brigade Association.
Earthquake region receives priority Corona vaccine
The spread of the corona virus among relief workers and earthquake victims is also likely to be problematic. For these reasons, the Croatian government has since changed the vaccination schedule and moved a larger number of vaccine doses to the Petrinja region.
More earthquakes and rain hamper relief efforts
As the reconstruction work, combined with the rainy winter weather on the ground as well as further earth tremors, is likely to take longer, aid organizations continue to hope for donations, even though the earthquake disaster in many neighboring countries has already taken a back seat due to the Corona crisis. Here again the link to the donation organizations from the previous SeaHelp post.
