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Tengrinews.kz – Kazakhstan’s National Scientific Center for Seismological Observation and Research under the Ministry of Emergency Situations has issued a clarification regarding the forecasts made by a group of Chinese seismologists about the possibility of powerful earthquakes in China and neighboring regions.
To recap, Chinese scientists from the Beijing Earthquake Agency recently reported the potential for strong seismic events with a magnitude of 8.0 in the coming years, based on seismic activity data from 1879 to the present.
Kazakhstan’s National Seismology Center stated that there is no reason for panic.
"The National Scientific Center for Seismological Observation and Research of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Republic of Kazakhstan urges citizens to remain calm, not to panic, and to treat information disseminated in the media—and especially on social media—critically," the statement said.
The center emphasized that the Chinese study only concerns specific regions of China—Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, located along the Longmenshan Fault, as well as the Eastern Himalayas.
"The regions mentioned in the study are too far from Kazakhstan for even the most powerful earthquake to have any impact here (...). These regions are thousands of kilometers away and lie within a completely different seismic belt," the statement explained.
The scientific center also dismissed forecasts of a magnitude 8+ earthquake in China as speculation.
"That claim is untrue. The study is hypothetical in nature and does not represent an accurate prediction. The researchers are not forecasting a specific earthquake—they are analyzing the cyclical nature of events within a single geological fault line," the statement added.
At the end of March, a series of strong earthquakes with a maximum magnitude of 7.7 struck Myanmar. The tremors were also felt in Thailand, China, and Vietnam. In Myanmar, the earthquake caused significant destruction: numerous buildings were damaged, and many people required medical assistance. The disaster led to the collapse of a bridge over the Irrawaddy River and partial destruction of the historic Mandalay Palace. The authorities of Myanmar declared a state of emergency. A total of 3,400 people were killed.
