4.8 Magnitude Earthquake in Haengan-myeon, Buan-gun, Jeonbuk... "Largest Scale This Year" (Comprehensive)

'Shaking' in the Seoul Metropolitan Area, Chungcheong, and Yeongnam
Strong earthquake on the mainland after over 6 years
Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters activates Level 1, crisis alert at caution level

The Korea Meteorological Administration announced that at 8:26:49 a.m. on the 12th, an earthquake with a magnitude of 4.8 occurred 4 km south-southwest of Buan-gun, Jeonbuk Province.

Earthquake epicenter. [Photo by Korea Meteorological Administration]

The epicenter was located at 35.70 degrees north latitude and 126.71 degrees east longitude. Administratively, it corresponds to Jindong-ri, Haengan-myeon, Buan-gun, Jeonbuk Province. The depth of the hypocenter was estimated to be 8 km. Aftershocks occurred three times until 8:40 a.m. The first observation by the KMA monitoring network was recorded 2 seconds after the event, at 8:26:51 a.m., and an emergency disaster text message was sent nationwide at 8:27:01 a.m., 10 seconds after the observation, in accordance with regulations.

Shaking was felt not only in Honam but also in the Seoul metropolitan area, Chungcheong, and Yeongnam regions. According to the Fire Agency, as of 8:40 a.m., 198 earthquake damage reports had been received. By region, reports were confirmed from ▲Seoul 2 ▲Busan 2 ▲Gwangju 14 ▲Daejeon 14 ▲Sejong 9 ▲Gyeonggi 23 ▲Gangwon 1 ▲Chungbuk 24 ▲Chungnam 27 ▲Jeonbuk 62 ▲Jeonnam 13 ▲Gyeongbuk 2 ▲Changwon 5, indicating shaking was felt in various areas. Among these, two on-site dispatches occurred in Buan, Jeonbuk.

This earthquake is the largest magnitude earthquake to occur on the Korean Peninsula and surrounding waters this year. It is the 16th strongest since the KMA began seismic instrument observations in 1978 and the 12th strongest since digital observations started in 1999. The last time an earthquake of magnitude 4.5 or higher occurred in South Korea was about a year ago, on May 15 of last year, when a magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 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 4 km northwest off the coast of Buk-gu, Pohang-si, Gyeongbuk Province, on February 11, 2018.

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