Desperate search for survivors after deadly quake hits Croatia
A strong earthquake in Croatia destroyed buildings and killed at least seven people yesterday southwest of the capital, displacing scores of residents or making them afraid to sleep indoors as emergency teams searched for those still missing.
The European Mediterranean Seismological Centre said the magnitude 6.3 quake hit 46km southeast of Zagreb just before 12.20pm local time. It caused widespread damage in the hardest-hit town of Petrinja.
The same area was struck by a magnitude 5.2 quake on Tuesday.
Officials said a 12-year-old girl died in Petrinja, a town of about 25,000 people. Another six people were killed in nearly destroyed villages close to the town, according to HRT state television.
At least 26 people were hospitalised, six with serious injuries, officials said, adding that many more people remained unaccounted for.
In Petrinja, cries could be heard from underneath destroyed houses. One woman was found alive about four hours after the quake. Emergency teams used rescue dogs in the search for survivors, while family members looked on in despair.
“My town has been completely destroyed. We have dead children,” Petrinja Mayor Darinko Dumbovic said in a statement broadcast by HRT. “This is like Hiroshima – half of the city no longer exists.”
Firefighters worked to remove the debris from a collapsed building that fell on a car. A man and a small boy eventually were rescued from the vehicle and carried into an ambulance.
The town was left without electricity or running water as officials scrambled to set up temporary accommodation for all of the displaced residents in need. Residents fearing another earthquake seemed poised to spend the night outside their homes.
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and other government ministers arrived in Petrinja after the earthquake.
“The biggest part of central Petrinja is in a red zone, which means that most of the buildings are not usable,” Plenkovic said.
He said the Army has 500 places ready in barracks to house people, while others will be accommodated in nearby hotels and other places.