Slovenia Bulletin: Northwestern region rocked by quake

petek, julij 30, 2004

Northwestern region rocked by quake

The northwestern region of Posočje was hit by an earthquake measuring 4.9 on the Richter scale on 12 July. The epicenter was 4km north of Kobarid, near the border with Italy. Aside from Slovenia and Italy, the tremor was also fet in Austria and Germany. An Italian mountaneer died as a result of the quake [Finance / 12.07.04 / Strong Quake Hits Western Slovenia]. Eleven others were injured.

Just six years ago, in 1998, another earthquake devastated the Posočje region. That quake, on 12 April 1998, was the strongest in Slovenia in a century and damage was in the billions [UVI / 13.07.04 / Strong Earthquake in Slovenia].

This time, the damage was not as extensive, but insurance companies are expecting upwards of 400 claims [Finance / 13.07.04 / Insurance Companies Shaking after Quake]. Some 127 buildings have been declared unsafe, and 136 people are now homeless.

A group of residents in Bovec, near Kobarid, are demanding to know why buildings rebuilt after the 1997 earthquake were destroyed by the latest one [Finance / 18.07.04 / Bovec Quake Victims Seek Responsibility]. The government determined that the region qualifies for emergency aid and allocated 1.7m euros immediately, promising more to come. The total reconstruction bill is estimated at 12.5m euros [SBW / 19.07.04 / Posocje Hit By Another Calamity, Finance / 22.07.04 / Government Changes Post-Quake, [SBW / 26.07.04 / MPs Amend Legislation for Swifter Post-Earthquake Repairs].