The National Center for Seismology has moved for the second time in a week to reassure the public that there is no cause for concern over recent earth tremors experienced in the east of the Madina province. Hani Zahran, President of the Center, said that two tremors on Wednesday in Harrat Khaibar and Al-Ethnain in the northeast of the province, registering 3.3 and 3.25 on the Richter scale respectively, were “ mild and do not pose any danger”. “The Center did not send a team to the area as the tremors represented ordinary occurrences,” Zahran said. “The Civil Defense was informed of them as a matter of routine.” Zahran added that the tremors were caused by subterranean magma and not by recent rains. The National Center is planning to add another seismology station at Harrat Khaibar to monitor tremors, Zahran said. “But that does not mean there are fears of recurrences,” he said. “The objective is to boost the technical and scientific facilities at the stations for more accurate readings of activity.” An earth tremor measuring 3.9 on the Richter scale was registered the previous Wednesday in the Al-Eis region of Harrat Al-Shaqqa, prompting Zahran to report that the local population was unaffected. A Madina Civil Defense official added that no damage was caused to property, but that “all units in Al-Eis are on full alert around-the-clock”. Nearly 30,000 residents of Al-Eis in the administrative region of Yanbu were forced to abandon their homes in May last year when volcanic activity and earth tremors of over 5 on the Richter scale hit the area. The evacuation of tens of thousands of people was ordered and it was several months before they were permitted to return. Tremors of a similar magnitude were also felt in the west of Madina as late as August.
