A strong earthquake hit central Croatia and caused major damage and at least one death in a city southeast of the capital
ZAGREB, Croatia – A strong earthquake struck central Croatia on Tuesday, causing major damage to homes and other buildings in a city southeast of the capital. A girl was killed in the earthquake and a man and a boy were rescued from a car buried in rubble and sent to a hospital.
The European Mediterranean Seismological Center said a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck 46 kilometers southeast of Zagreb. Initial reports said the quake caused extensive damage, collapsed roofs, building facades and even some entire buildings.
The same area was hit by a 5.2-month earthquake and several smaller aftershocks were felt on Tuesday.
Croatian state broadcaster HRT said a girl died in the quake in Petrinja, a city southeast of the capital that was hit hardest by the quake. Other Croatian media also reported the death, citing the mayor of the city. The child’s age or other details were not immediately available.
“The Petrinja Center, as it was, no longer exists,” HRT said in its report. “One girl died and there were injuries and people inside the collapsed buildings.”
“My city has been completely destroyed, we have dead children,” Petrinja Mayor Darinko Dumbovic said in a statement broadcast by HRT TV. “It’s like Hiroshima – half the city doesn’t exist anymore.”
“The city has been demolished, the city is no longer habitable,” he said. “We need help.”
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and other government ministers arrived in Petrinja after the earthquake.
The regional television channel N1 reported live in the city on Tuesday that a collapsed building fell on a car. The footage showed firefighters trying to remove debris to reach the car that was buried underneath. A man and a boy were eventually rescued from the car and transported in an ambulance.
Fallen bricks and dust scattered the streets, and many houses were completely destroyed. The Croatian army was deployed to Petrinja to help with the rescue operation.
Croatian media said people were injured in the quake, but initially could not say how much of the confusion and falling telephone lines.
Croatian seismologist Kresimir Kuk described the quake as “extremely strong”, much stronger than another that hit Zagreb and nearby areas in the spring. He warned people to avoid potentially unshakable old buildings and move to newer areas of the city because of the aftershocks.
In the capital, people fled the streets and parks in fear. Many allegedly left Zagreb, ignoring the travel ban imposed due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The quake affected the country and neighboring Serbia, Bosnia and Slovenia. It felt as far away as Graz in southern Austria, the Austrian news agency reported.
Slovenian authorities say the Krsko nuclear power plant has been temporarily shut down following the quake. The plant is jointly owned by Slovenia and Croatia and is located near their border.