A 6.4 magnitude earthquake, generated in Zagreb, has shaken the town of Petrinja in Croatia. A smaller earthquake on Monday, December 28th, left the town shaken — right before it was devastated by this large scale earthquake the next day. This is the first major earthquake to hit Croatia, and could seriously impact their infrastructure going into the next year.
Already, this small town finds itself without water, electricity, and heat, and is relying on emergency medical services to clear the rubble to find people. This town is experiencing a truly horrifying scenario.
[post_page_title]Reduced to rubble[/post_page_title]
At least six people are deceased after this earthquake, with many still unaccounted for. As time goes on, it is likely that the number of casualties will rise. The mayor of the city, Darinko Dumbovic, says that many of his people have lost the very roofs over their heads. They are living without access to clean water or electricity, at a time of year where that can be extremely dangerous. Of the town’s 25,000 inhabitants, a majority of the downtown area has been reduced to almost nothing in the wake of this earthquake.
Thankfully, a local military barrack is open, allowing those who are now homeless to seek shelter there, until the clean up work can be completed. Right now though, the main focus is on safely finding the many people who are still unaccounted for at this time.
[post_page_title]Military intervention[/post_page_title]
At the moment, 250 of the Croatian armed forces are in the town. Their primary duty, after securing and finding the missing individuals, is to care for the ones now in the barracks. Another big duty is moving a large number of patients from the damaged Petrinja hospital to the nearest hospital in Zagreb. It is likely these patients will be transported via helicopter to the hospital, but first a suitable transition of those patients must be provided for. This earthquake has also affected other areas of the country.
A sports center in Zagreb, currently being used to house those with coronavirus, will now have to house others from the affected area who also have coronavirus. In addition, Slovenia, a bordering country, closed the nuclear power plant at Krsko as a safety precaution, just in case there are more earthquakes to follow. The Prime Minister of Croatia said that the people will rally together to get through this.
