After a 4.8 Magnitude Earthquake in Buan-gun, Jeonbuk, '15 Aftershocks' Continue

Possibility of Aftershocks Continuing for Several Months

The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) announced on the 12th that after a magnitude 4.8 earthquake occurred in Buan-gun, Jeonbuk Province in the morning, a total of 15 aftershocks have continued as of 2 p.m.

Earthquake epicenter. [Photo by Korea Meteorological Administration]

The largest aftershock currently is a magnitude 3.1 earthquake that occurred around 1:55 p.m. the same day in Buan, Jeonbuk. This earthquake caused weak tremors to be felt in the Chungnam, Gyeongnam, and Jeonnam regions. Earthquakes occur as accumulated stress along a fault is released, and generally, the stress is not fully released by a single earthquake, resulting in aftershocks. The Gyeongju earthquake in September 2016 (magnitude 5.8) was followed by 142 aftershocks of magnitude 2.0 or higher over the course of one month. The Pohang earthquake in November 2017 (magnitude 5.4) had 70 aftershocks within a month. In Pohang’s case, a magnitude 4.6 aftershock occurred in February 2018, about three months after the initial earthquake.

The KMA reported that a magnitude 4.8 earthquake occurred at 8:26:49 a.m. in Jindong-ri, Haengan-myeon, Buan-gun, Jeonbuk Province. The epicenter was located at 35.70 degrees north latitude and 126.71 degrees east longitude. The depth of the hypocenter was estimated to be 8 km. The first observation by the KMA’s seismic network was recorded 2 seconds after the event at 8:26:51 a.m., and an emergency disaster alert was sent nationwide at 8:27:01 a.m., 10 seconds after the observation, according to regulations.

This earthquake is the largest magnitude earthquake to occur this year in the Korean Peninsula and surrounding waters. It is the 16th strongest since the KMA began instrumental seismic observations in 1978 and the 12th strongest since digital observations started in 1999. It has been about a year since a magnitude 4.5 or higher earthquake occurred in South Korea, the last being a magnitude 4.5 earthquake on May 15 last year, 52 km northeast off the coast of Donghae-si, Gangwon Province. On land, it has been over six years since a magnitude 4.6 earthquake occurred on February 11, 2018, 4 km northwest off the coast of Buk-gu, Pohang-si, Gyeongbuk Province.

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety activated Emergency Level 1 of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (CDSCH) to quickly assess damage and take necessary measures, and issued an earthquake crisis alert at the "Warning" level. Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min urgently instructed, "Relevant ministries and local governments should cooperate closely, maintain an emergency response system, promptly assess the damage situation, and take necessary actions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.