Seven people were killed and more than 20 were injured after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake, second in two days, shook central Croatia on Tuesday, officials and residents told Reuters.
People were rescued from the rubble of collapsed buildings in Petrinja and other cities, while army troops were dispatched to the area for help.
Tremors were felt in the Croatian capital Zagreb and the Austrian capital Vienna. As a precautionary measure, Slovenia has closed its only nuclear power plant.
According to GFZ German Research Center for Geosciences, the earthquake hit at 11:19 GMT at a depth of 10 km (6 miles) with the Petrinja epicenter, 50 km south of Zagreb.
“By now, in the vicinity of the town of Glina we have five fatalities. Together with a (12-year-old) girl from Petrinja there are altogether six dead,” Deputy Prime Minister Tomo Medved said while visiting Glina.
Zajedno s ministrom @ViliBeros posjetio sam Sisak kako bismo provjerili stanje sisačke bolnice koja je dosta stradala u potresu. Svi pacijenti koji trebaju bit će prebačeni u zagrebačke bolnice, a transport će biti organiziran helikopterima @MORH_OSRH i hitnom službom. pic.twitter.com/Ugr1I8X9HB
— Andrej Plenković (@AndrejPlenkovic) December 29, 2020
State news agency Hina, citing firefighters, later reported that a seventh victim had been found in the rubble of a church in the village of Zazina.
At least 20 people were slightly injured and six others were seriously injured, police said.
“The search through the rubble is continuing,” police said in a statement.
Izražavam sućut obiteljima stradalih u Petrinji i Glini u razornom potresu. Nadamo se da će broj žrtava biti što manji. Sve službe su na terenu i neumorno rade te pružaju pomoć svima kojima je potrebna. Zahvaljujem svima na požrtvovnosti i trudu! pic.twitter.com/r8poDh0JuI
— Andrej Plenković (@AndrejPlenkovic) December 29, 2020
Numerous aftershocks of magnitude 3.0 or greater occurred throughout the day.
Tomislav Fabijanic, head of emergency services in Sisak, said several people in Petrinja and Sisak were injured, and their injuries included fractures and concussions.
Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said: “The army is here to help. We will have to move some people from Petrinja because it is unsafe to be here.”
