Is a big quake approaching? This question, these days, is surely sending a chill down the spine of each Kenyan and Tanzanian. It was on July 12, tremors had their jerks felt mildly across the cities, with very few being able to realize it.
But, what followed a week later, are a couple of good jolts, forcing people flee their offices in downtown Nairobi. The tremors then were gone altogether! But, it is not that the chapter closed – but left scientists confused and unsure of what led to this ‘earthquake swarm!’
Though no much damage is caused by the earthquakes, the fear of the future lingers. To the inhabitants, what is fearful is the query –
Is it just a cautionary of a forthcoming devastation?
But, the scientists seem to be left pondering on something more –
Was it fault activity along the Rift Valley, where the African tectonic plate is stretching? Or was it Ol Doinyo Lengai, a Tanzanian volcano that sits near the swarm’s epicenter?
Though the government officials have concluded the blames on ‘the theory that rumbling in Ol Doinyo Lengai’ – meaning Mountain of God, the fears of an imminent massive eruption does not seem to fade away.
This is triggering the several hundred people living on its slopes to evacuate, with the Tanzanian government already warned tourists to stay away. After all, the African plate, covering the entire continent is in the middle of tectonic change.
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