5.9 Magnitude Earthquake Hits in Assam, Manipur & Nagaland on Nov 21st, 2011

An earthquake measuring 5.9 Magnitude on the Richter scale rocked India’s northeast, Myanmar and Bangladesh on Monday November 21st. The tremor was felt at 8.47am in most parts of Assam, Nagaland & Manipur, besides in Bangladesh and Myanmar.

The epicentre was located at 24.947oN, 95.226oE in Myanmar, about 130 km east of Manipur capital Imphal, the website of US Geological Survey said.

The region also experienced one of the worst earthquakes in 1897 measuring 8.7 on the Richter scale, that claimed the lives of over 1,600 people. Another killer quake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale shook the region in September in which more than 50 people died.

Seven northeastern states – Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh & Manipur are considered by seismologists to be the sixth most earthquake-prone belt in the world.

There has been no report of any loss of life or damage to property due to the quake.