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At least seven people were killed and dozens injured after a strong earthquake shook central Croatia, destroyed buildings and caused people to flee in panic onto rubble-strewn streets in a city southeast of the capital Zagreb.
The European Mediterranean Seismological Center said a 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck 46 kilometers from Zagreb at 11:19 a.m. Initial reports said the earthquake caused extensive damage, causing roofs, building facades and entire buildings to collapse.
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said late Tuesday that seven victims had been found so far and that “there would probably be more.”
Authorities said a 12-year-old girl was killed in Petrinja, a city of about 25,000 people. Five other people died in a nearby village, which was almost completely destroyed, according to state television HRT. At least 20 people were hospitalized, two seriously injured, authorities said, adding that many more people were still missing.
In Petrinja, screams could be heard from under the destroyed houses. A woman was found alive about four hours after the earthquake. Emergency teams used rescue dogs to search for the survivors, while family members watched in desperation.
Six people were rescued from the rubble with the help of dogs, according to the Croatian Mountain Rescue Service.
“My city has been completely destroyed. We have dead children, ”Petrinja Mayor Darinko Dumbovic said in a statement released by HRT. “This is like Hiroshima: half the city no longer exists.”
Marica Pavlovic, a resident, said the earthquake felt “worse than a war.”
“It was horrible, a shock, you don’t know what to do, run away or hide somewhere,” he told the Associated Press.
“Even if we wanted to, we can’t go back inside, there’s no electricity,” she said, huddled with others in a downtown park, wrapped in blankets. “
Plenković and other government ministers arrived in Petrinja after the earthquake. “Most of downtown Petrinja is in a red zone, which means that most of the buildings cannot be used,” said Plenković.
The army had 500 places ready in barracks to house people, he said, while others would stay in nearby hotels and other places. “No one should stay outside in the cold tonight,” the prime minister said.
The authorities also visited a damaged hospital in the nearby town of Sisak, which was also seriously affected. Plenković said the patients would be evacuated in helicopters and army ambulances.
Health officials said a baby was born in a tent in front of the hospital after the earthquake.
The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said on Twitter that she had spoken with Plenković and had instructed an envoy to travel to Croatia as soon as possible.
Ursula von der Leyen
(@vonderleyen)After another powerful earthquake in Croatia, the second in the last 2 days, I spoke with the prime minister. @AndrejPlenkovic again.
We are ready to support. I asked @JanezLenarcic be prepared to travel to Croatia as soon as the situation permits.
We support Croatia.
As a Mediterranean country, Croatia is prone to earthquakes, but large earthquakes are rare. The last fort struck in the 1990s when the Adriatic city of Ston was badly damaged by a 6.0 magnitude earthquake.
Regional television channel N1 reported live Tuesday from Petrinja that a collapsed building had fallen on a car. The footage showed firefighters trying to clear debris to reach the vehicle, buried underneath. Finally, a man and a small boy were rescued.
Croatian seismologist Krešimir Kuk described the earthquake as “extremely strong”, much stronger than another earthquake that hit Zagreb and nearby areas in the spring. He warned people to stay away from potentially unstable old buildings and to move to newer areas of the city in case of aftershocks.
In the capital, people ran into the streets and parks in fear. Many were reportedly leaving Zagreb, ignoring the travel ban imposed due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The earthquake was felt throughout the country and in neighboring Serbia, Bosnia and Slovenia. It was even felt as far away as Graz in southern Austria, the Austrian Press Agency reported.
Slovenian authorities said the Krško nuclear power plant was temporarily shut down after the earthquake. The power plant is jointly owned by Slovenia and Croatia and is located near their border.
The Balkan region is on large faults and suffers from regular earthquakes. Zagreb is still rebuilding after a 5.3 magnitude earthquake in March, the most powerful to hit the capital in decades.
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