By: Sara Bertoncelj
Prime Minister Janez Janša informed the citizens via Twitter that he spoke to the Prime Minister of Croatia, Andrej Plenković, and offered him Slovenia’s help in anything they might urgently need, following the devastating earthquake in Petrinja and its surroundings. “The Administration for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief is on standby and in direct contact with the responsible authorities in Croatia,” the Prime Minister also wrote, adding that the earthquake did not cause major damage in Slovenia. The damage is mainly visible on the facades, bell towers, chimneys. Janša also announced a national rehearsal for safe conduct following an earthquake.
On Tuesday, nineteen minutes past twelve, the ground shook once again in Croatia; the earthquake had the magnitude of 6,3 on the Richter scale. Footage from the town of Petrinja, where another earthquake had already happened on Monday, show buildings in ruins, chaos reigning in the streets, and unfortunately, according to the latest data, there have also been fatalities. So far, there has been no data about any major injuries in Slovenia, that would have occurred as the result of Tuesday’s earthquake. The epicentre of the earthquake was near Croatia’s Petrinja, and it is expected that earthquakes will now also happen in southeastern Slovenia, Andrej Gosar, a seismologist on duty at the Slovenian Environment Agency, told the Slovenian Press Agency. According to his estimations, there will be no serious consequences; mainly, new cracks will appear on the facades of the houses. He also said that many aftershocks will follow and that they might even last for days.
Following the strong earthquake that happened in Croatia, which, according to the latest data, also resulted in several deaths, the Prime Minister Janez Janša also spoke to the Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and offered Croatia our assistance. “The Administration for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief is on standby and in direct contact with the responsible authorities in Croatia,” Janša wrote.
“According to the data that has been collected so far, the earthquake with the epicentre in Croatia did not cause major damage in Slovenia, thank God. However, we have recorded several damages on the facades of buildings, church bell towers and chimneys of residential houses. In 2021, we will conduct a national rehearsal for safe conduct following earthquakes,” said the Prime Minister. The Minister of Infrastructure Jernej Vrtovec announced that the Krško Nuclear Power Plant had been safely stopped, due to the strong earthquake. “The shutdown happened due to the automatic operation of the protective turbine. After the first examination, this happened without any consequences, so there is no danger to our safety,” he wrote. Franc Bogovič explained that the Krško Nuclear Power Plant was built to withstand an earthquake of the magnitude 9.
Slovenia is located in an earthquake-prone area, so it is necessary for all citizens to be educated on how to act during and after an earthquake, the Administration for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief stated on its website. It is important that each household specifies which are the safe places where people can take refuge during an earthquake. These are places under solid tables, between door frames and along the internal load-bearing walls. During an earthquake, it is important to avoid the exterior and partition walls, chimneys and bricks, larger glass surfaces, large cabinets, and places where ceiling lighting and heavy objects may fall down. According to the Administration for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief, it is important that we remain calm during the earthquake, stop whatever we are doing, and take appropriate action. “Do not run out of the building, use an elevator or stairs or jump out of windows during an earthquake,” the website states. They also write it is best to avoid the traffic lights, power lines, overpasses, underpasses, bridges and tunnels, riverbanks and shores during an earthquake.
