<중대본, Sent to 'Jeonnam Jangsu-gun' Then Corrected
KMA Initially Announced Earthquake Magnitude 4.1
Downscaled to 3.5, Only Related Agencies Notified>
On the afternoon of the 29th, regarding the earthquake that occurred in Jangsu-gun, Jeonbuk Province, it was confirmed that there were some errors in the text messages sent by the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) and the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).
CDSCH sent 'Jangsu-gun, Jeonnam' instead of 'Jangsu-gun, Jeonbuk'
On the 29th at around 7:07 PM, a magnitude 3.5 earthquake occurred in Jangsu-gun, Jeonbuk. Afterward, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) sent a disaster alert message advising caution in case of aftershocks, but mistakenly indicated the earthquake location as Jangsu-gun, Jeonnam, causing confusion. [Photo by Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters message capture]
At around 7:07 PM on the 29th, an earthquake with a magnitude of 3.5 occurred 17 km north of Jangsu-gun, Jeonbuk Province. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety (MOIS) activated the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters Level 1 at around 7:10 PM for rapid situation assessment and emergency response.
About 1 hour and 20 minutes after the earthquake, at around 8:26 PM, the CDSCH sent a disaster text message to eight provinces and cities including Jeonbuk, Jeonnam, Gwangju, Gyeongbuk, Gyeongnam, Chungbuk, Chungnam, and Daejeon, stating: "An earthquake (magnitude 3.5) occurred in Jangsu-gun, Jeonnam. No damage has been reported so far. Please calmly respond according to earthquake action guidelines in case of additional tremors."
However, after belatedly realizing that 'Jangsu-gun, Jeonbuk' was mistakenly written as 'Jangsu-gun, Jeonnam,' the CDSCH corrected the message and resent it at around 8:46 PM, 20 minutes later.
An official from MOIS explained, "There was a mistake in the urgent situation, so it was corrected. The KMA sent the emergency disaster message about the earthquake occurrence, and the CDSCH message was intended to ask the public to follow the earthquake action guidelines in preparation for aftershocks."
KMA sent emergency disaster message for magnitude 4.1 earthquake... no correction message sent after magnitude revision
The Korea Meteorological Administration announced that an earthquake with a magnitude of 3.5 occurred at around 7:07 PM on the 29th, 17 km north of Jangsu-gun, Jeonbuk (Cheoncheon-myeon). The depth of the epicenter was estimated to be 6 km. [Image source=Yonhap News]
There was also an error in the message sent by the KMA.
At the time of the earthquake, the KMA announced that an earthquake of magnitude 4.1 had occurred. Since earthquakes of magnitude 4.0 or higher are rare on the Korean Peninsula, an emergency disaster message was sent to the entire nation. The message was sent promptly at around 7:08 PM, just 12 seconds after the earthquake occurred.
Five minutes later, at 7:13 PM, the KMA manually analyzed the earthquake bulletin announced at 7:08 PM on July 29 and revised the earthquake magnitude to 3.5.
The initial automatic analysis based on the speed of the P-wave judged the magnitude as 4.1, which triggered the automatic nationwide emergency disaster message, but subsequent analysis adjusted it to 3.5.
However, the KMA did not directly inform the public of this revision through emergency disaster messages but only notified related agencies.
The Jeonju Meteorological Office stated, "Earthquakes below magnitude 4.0 do not warrant sending emergency disaster messages to the entire nation, so the information was only shared with related agencies."
Later, based on KMA information, Jeonbuk Province sent a message to residents at around 7:25 PM reporting the occurrence of a magnitude 3.5 earthquake and urged caution.
However, netizens living outside the nearby area expressed disappointment with the KMA's response, saying, "I only found out about the magnitude downgrade after receiving the message and searching for information. I was anxious until I looked it up myself, so it feels frustrating."
Seven damage reports recorded... no casualties
Meanwhile, as of 11 PM on the 30th, the CDSCH reported that seven damage cases were recorded due to the Jangsu earthquake. Five reports were received from Jangsu-gun, Jeonbuk, including damage to house fences and building cracks, and two reports from Jinan-gun, Jeonbuk, including cracks in apartment balconies and external restroom walls.
There were a total of 52 'felt earthquake' reports: 43 from Jeonbuk, 4 from Gyeongbuk, 2 from Gyeongnam, 1 from Jeonnam, 1 from Chungnam, and 1 from Busan.
No casualties were reported.
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