Two strong earthquakes, of magnitude 3.5 and 4.4 on the Richter scale, were felt in the last minutes between Naples and the province, in the late afternoon of today, May 20th: the first at 7.51pm, with epicenter in the Solfatara area, in the territory of Pozzuoli, on the border with Naples, the second a few minutes later , at 8.10pm, again in the Campi Flegrei area. The estimated depth of the first shock, communicated by the Vesuvian Observatory via its website, is 2.77 kilometres; there estimated magnitude is 3.5 on the Richter scale. The second would have occurred, according to the first available data, at a depth of 2.56 km and with magnitude of 4.4.
The seismographs of the Vesuvian Observatory recorded a series of tremors, almost all of which were minor, starting at 7.29pm. Up to 8.22pm there were 29, almost all very shallow (with depths estimated between 0 and 1 kilometre). Contacted by Fanpage.it, Mauro Di Vitodirector of the Vesuvian Observatory, explains that a new earthquake swarm is underway after the one of the last few hours.
The damage in the Conad supermarket in Pozzuoli
With an official statement, INGV explains
Give her 7.51pm Italian time (17:51 UTC) on 05/20/2024 a seismic swarm is underway in the Campi Flegrei area. At the time of issue of this press release (8.34 pm), 20 earthquakes with magnitude Md ≥ 0.0 (2 localized) had been preliminarily detected and a maximum magnitude Md = 4.4 ±0.3.
The two strongest tremors were felt above all in Pozzuoli and in the western outskirts of Naples (Bagnoli and the Agnano area), territories closer to the localized epicentres, but due to their size they were also felt in very distant areas: in the municipalities of Licola and Quarto, where several residents took to the streets, and, as regards Naples, throughout the western quadrant, in Miano, in the Capodichino area, in the historic center, in Vomero and in Arenella; Even in Naples, many fearful residents left their homes.
At the moment there are no injuries or significant damage reported; in Arco Felice, a hamlet of Pozzuoli, the earthquake would have caused a landslide on Mount Sant’Angelo. In Pozzuoli, damage was recorded in commercial activities, such as in the Conad supermarket where, a video shows, products fell from the shelves. There were around twenty requests for intervention from the Fire Brigade.
