Earthquake in Bahrain – Verified!
The Directorate of Meteorology at the Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications (MTT), received several calls from citizens on the morning of Monday 9 March 2020 reporting an earthquake that was felt in few areas in the Kingdom.
Upon receipt of the calls, specialists at the Seismology section in the Meteorology Directorate investigated the inquiries through the Seismic monitoring system, as well as the system network that is connected to the seismic monitoring systems of the UAE, the Sultanate of Oman and Kuwait. In addition, the Seismology team also checked the European and US seismology center to further verify, and no information was found at these centers that reported an earthquake in Bahrain. Accordingly, the Meteorological Directorate issued statements on MTT social media accounts denying reports about any seismic activity.
Upon further investigation, the Meteorology Directorate contacted the Geological Survey Authority in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia who verified that they recorded an earthquake in Bahrain at 06:06 a.m. on March 9 with a strength of 3.01 on the Richter scale and with a depth of 3.55 km.
Based on this new information, the Meteorology Directorate issued an amended statement on the same day on its social media accounts to inform the public about the details of the earthquake that had been felt by some citizens.
The Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications reaffirms its commitment to issuing correct information in a transparent and accurate manner and would like to thank all members of the public who called and interacted with MTT either by phone or on its social media channels.
