Origin time 3:29 pm Depth 40.0 km (24.9 mi) Date 10 September 2016 | Magnitude 5.9 Mw Casualties 23 dead
260 injured | |
 | ||
Areas affected Burundi
Democratic Republic of Congo
Kenya
Rwanda
Tanzania
Uganda | ||
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck Tanzania 22 km (14 mi) northeast of Nsunga, Kagera Region on September 10 at a depth of 40 km (25 mi). The shock had a maximum intensity of VII (Very strong). Nineteen people were killed and 253 injured in Tanzania, while four people were killed in Kamuli and seven others were injured in the Rakai District of neighbouring Uganda.
Contents
Casualties and damage
At least 19 people were killed and 253 others injured in Tanzania, with most of the casualties occurring in the town of Bukoba, which suffered widespread damage. In the immediate aftermath of he quake, the main hospital was reported to be stretched beyond its capacity and running low on stocks of medicine, while electricity and telecommunication services were disrupted. On September 12, the Tanzanian Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa's office reported at least 840 houses were destroyed by the quake, with another 1,264 seriously damaged, rendering thousands of people homeless.
In Uganda, the most affected area was the Kyebe sub-county near Kakuuto, where about 78 houses collapsed at Minziiro, and more than 40 others at Kannabulemu, including a police post. At least four people were killed and seven others were injured across the country.
The tremor was also felt in Burundi, DRC, Kenya and Rwanda.
Response
Members of the Tanzanian Red Cross took part in relief and rescue operations after the quake, aided by volunteers from across the country, as well as from neighbouring Uganda and Kenya.
The President of Tanzania John Magufuli postponed a visit to Zambia to take charge of the government's relief efforts, while his Kenyan counterpart Uhuru Kenyatta expressed solidarity with the people of Tanzania and ordered the Kenya Defence Forces to airlift iron sheets, blankets and mattresses in response to the disaster.