Another earth tremor struck Kwoi community in Jaba Local Government Area of Kaduna State yesterday at about 9 a.m. School activities were disrupted, as pupils were asked to return to their homes. Frightened residents also intensified efforts to move their families away from the area. Yesterday’s incident follows a string of tremors in the last two weeks.

The Centre for Space Technology and Development (CSTD) has, however, urged people not to vacate the town, describing the situation as non-life threatening. CSTD Director and Chief Executive, Dr. Spencer Onuh, gave the assurance in Abuja yesterday in an interview with journalists.

He said: “Jaba is not a dangerous place to live. The West African plain is not dangerous regarding earthquakes. When you have a tremor, you can have a follow-up. I think that’s what happened. But what we had is a very minor tremor.

“From reports reaching us from our Toro office in Jos, that is the Centre for geodesics and geodynamics, which studies crustal movement, we shouldn’t have any fear, and people should not leave the area. It hasn’t reached that level. If it has, we’ll be advised.”

A community leader, Mallam Suleiman Yakubu, said: “The heavy vibration happened around 9 a.m., yesterday. It also occurred on Monday, around 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. The sound of Monday’s tremor was not as loud and frightening as this morning’s.”

He complained: “They (government) said they will bring in experts immediately the incident happened. But we haven’t seen them. We only learnt they were in Abuja and Jos deliberating on the issue. If they are sincere, they should relocate to Kwoi and feel what we are experiencing here. Only then would they be able to decide correctly what to do about the problem.”

Head of Geography Department, Kaduna State University (KASU), Dr. Idowu Innocent Abbas, said: “It is unfortunate that the tremor happened. But it is not unusual. This is because it can happen anywhere and at any time. As long as there is movement underneath the earth surface, it can happen anywhere.”

But he warned: “The tremor could be a signal for a bigger incident in Kwoi. It still depends on what is happening within the earth surface. The Nigerian Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) is already looking into it. An earth tremor is a small earthquake. A major earthquake could come.

“The tremor in Kwoi could be a sign of an earthquake coming. But, there is nothing anybody can do to stop that. The only thing that can be done is once we have signs, like earth tremors, forecast can be made and warnings issued.” (The Guardian)

•Photo shows cracked walls caused by earth tremor.

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