‘My bed was shaking’: Social media flooded with Kolkata tremors posts as 5.9-magnitude earthquake hits Myanmar

Strong tremors were felt in Kolkata and various parts of West Bengal, as well as in neighbouring Bangladesh, after an earthquake of magnitude 5.9 rattled Myanmar on Tuesday.

The earthquake is estimated to have measured about 5.9 on the Richter scale. Data from the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) showed that the epicentre was located nearly 70 miles east of Akyab in Myanmar. The German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) said the quake occurred at a depth of around 10 kilometres (6.21 miles).

In several areas of Kolkata, residents left their homes after fans and other household items began swaying when the quake struck. People took to social media to share their experiences of the earthquake, with many underlining how long the tremors lasted.

One user wrote: “Did South Kolkata experience an earthquake twice today?? In the early morning and just now.”

Another wrote: “Earthquake in Kolkata? Did anyone else feel it?”

A third user wrote: “Five minutes ago, my bed was shaking — felt like an earthquake.”

According to the EMSC, this was the third earthquake to be felt in Myanmar over the past 71 hours. There have been no reports of damage so far.

It was also the second tremor felt in Bangladesh within a span of 24 hours. Earlier on Tuesday, a 4.1-magnitude earthquake struck the country, the National Centre for Seismology (NCS) said in a statement.

The NCS added that the quake occurred at a depth of 150 km.

Experts note that earthquakes occur somewhere in the world roughly every 30 seconds, though most are too weak to be detected.

A 4.0-magnitude earthquake releases energy comparable to about 6 tonnes of TNT. However, as the Richter scale is logarithmic (base 10), the energy released rises sharply with each increase in magnitude. For instance, a 5.0-magnitude quake is equivalent to about 200 tonnes of TNT, a 7.0-magnitude quake to 199,000 tonnes, and a 9.0-magnitude quake to 99,000,000 tonnes of TNT, The Daily Star reported.