BANGALORE: Wednesday's earthquake in Indonesia had a rippling effect on Karnataka, with tremors experienced all over the state.
In Mangalore city, a commercial complex was evacuated immediately at noon after people felt tremors.
A majority of the shops inside the Maximus Commercial Complex in Light House Hill in the city was evacuated after experiencing mild vibration twice between 2 pm to 4.30 pm. People came out when they felt the tremors.
District administration officials said that they have collected seismic information from across the district, but tremors were felt only in the city. A few people from Pandeswar also reported their experience to officials.
Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner N S Channappa Gowda informed that there is no threat of tsunami to the coastal region yet, though authorities have been kept on alert.
Fishermen have been warned not to venture into sea, he added.
Teacher Observes Movement Inside Class
A professor at Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal, is said to have observed the movement of projector screens while taking class. Students in top floors rushed to the ground. Employees of Manipal Technologies Ltd functioning from Udayavani building also felt tremors for several minutes.
An employee Neetha K said they saw the unusual movement of rotating chairs and vertical blinds. Many of them also felt giddy.
A mild tremor was also felt at the fifth floor of the Udayavani building a second time around 4.28 pm. Employees working there were evacuated and returned to work only after 15 minutes.
Tremors were experienced in many multi-storeyed buildings.
Deputy Commissioner M T Reju said that tremors had been felt across the nation.
In Davanagere, mild tremors lasting for a few seconds were experienced in various localities of the city at about 1.50 pm. Sources from Department of Mines and Geology said the tremors could have been the result of activity between tectonic plates of Kolar and Gowribidanur regions from eastern range to western range. Patients of Chigateri Government General Hospital evacuated the building. Tremors were reported in parts of Kolar and KGF districts around 2:20 pm. People rushed out of their houses in panic.
Cellphone networks were jammed in the region.
In Belgaum district, residents of Tilakwadi and Hindwadi villages ran out of their houses in panic following the tremors. One Prof R B Kulkarni told Express that he felt the tremors.
(with inputs from Mangalore, Udupi, Belgaum, Kolar and Davangere)