While this news initially caused major distress, as soon as things started settling down after tsunami warnings were not issued, another major news broke out on the 30th of December 2023 as a 5.6 magnitude earthquake struck in Sumatra, Indonesia.
Just days after the Tsunami Memorial Day in the Maldives, which remembers the destruction and lives lost in the tsunami that took place on December 26th, 2004, the Southern part of the Maldives woke up in fear of a tsunami warning as the weather conditions kept getting worse, and four earthquakes struck the southern part of the Maldives in the early hours of 29th December 2023.
This news broke out after the southern islands, Addu and Fuvahmulah City both have been experiencing the dreadful rains of the monsoon season, with the heavy downpours causing major flooding in parts of the cities. With a major part of the Maldives now experiencing rainy weather, the nears surrounding the earthquakes struck as major news, as a small nation such as the Maldives constantly faces the threat of climate change.
While this news broke out major fears among citizens, it was soon reported that the quakes stuck about 900 kilometres from Addu City, and there were no tsunami warnings put out following the quakes. It was also revealed that the first quake was recorded at a depth of 10 kilometres at a magnitude of 4.8 on the Richter scale, the second quake recorded at a depth of 10 kilometres at a magnitude of 5.2 on the Richter scale, the third quake recorded at a depth of 7.7 kilometres at a magnitude of 5.8 on the Richter scale, and lastly the fourth quake being recorded at a depth of 10 kilometres at a magnitude of 5 on the Richter scale.
While this news initially caused major distress, as soon as things started settling down after tsunami warnings were not issued, another major news broke out on the 30th of December 2023 as a 5.6 magnitude earthquake struck in Sumatra, Indonesia. While earthquakes in Sumatra always cause fear in the Maldives, it appears that this particular earthquake is predicted to not have any effects in the Maldives, as tsunami warnings were not issued following this earthquake as well.
Although these incidents did not result in the Maldives facing any tsunami threats, it has been an eye-opening few days as the destructive tsunami that took place in 2004 in the Maldives was also a direct result of an earthquake that hit the Sumatra region of Indonesia.
