Up to 80,000 people reside in the affected regions.
A series of earthquakes, the strongest registering a magnitude of 5.8, struck the Horn of Africa on Saturday. No casualties have been reported so far, according to AFP.
The seismic activity occurred primarily in rural areas of Ethiopia’s Afar, Oromia, and Amhara regions. Ethiopian authorities stated that approximately 80,000 people live in the impacted areas. The most vulnerable residents were moved to temporary shelters, though officials have not disclosed the exact number of evacuees.
The earthquakes caused damage to homes and raised concerns about a potential volcanic eruption at the dormant Dofan volcano in Afar. While smoke clouds from the crater have subsided, residents in the vicinity fled their homes in panic.
Earthquakes are common in Ethiopia due to its location along the Great Rift Valley, one of the world’s most seismically active zones. Experts attribute the tremors and potential eruptions to the movement and expansion of tectonic plates beneath the valley.
