The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) reported that the Salatiga, Banyubiru, Bawen, and Ambarawa areas in Central Java were rocked by earthquakes four times on Sunday (10/24/2021) morning. The highest earthquake magnitude reached M3.4.
“Since 5:57 WIB, four series of earthquakes have been felt to shake Banyubiru and Ambarawa with a magnitude of 3.4; 2,3; 2,3; and 2.2. This is the character of the earthquake swarm,” said the Head of the BMKG Earthquake and Tsunami Mitigation Agency, Daryono in Jakarta, Sunday (24/10/2021).
Meanwhile, throughout Saturday (10/23/2021) these areas have been shaken by 24 earthquakes since Saturday (23/10/2021). BMKG noted that the main earthquake occurred on Saturday (10/23/2021) at 00.32 WIB with a magnitude of 3.0. The epicenter of the earthquake was located at coordinates 7.296 South Latitude and 110.38568 East Longitude, precisely on land at a distance of 13 km northwest of Salatiga City with a hypocenter depth of 6 km.
Daryono explained that by observing the location of the epicenter and the depth of the hypocenter, the earthquake that occurred was a shallow earthquake caused by active fault activity. It is strongly suspected that the source of the active fault that triggered this earthquake was the Merbabu Merapi Telomoyo Fault.
“Based on the BMKG shake map, it appears that the impact of the earthquake in the form of shocks was felt in Ambarawa, Salatiga, Banyubiru, and Bawen on the MMI II intensity scale where the shock was felt by many people and light objects that were hung swayed,” said Daryono.
Daryono said considering that the Salatiga, Banyubiru, Bawen, and Ambarwa areas are close to active fault earthquake sources, namely the Merapi Merbabu Fault and the Rawa Pening Fault, it is necessary to conduct earthquake mitigation education.
“Such as the importance of building earthquake-resistant or earthquake-friendly buildings, understanding how to survive an earthquake, because strong earthquakes can occur at any time from the closest active earthquake source,” he said.
