Quake leaves 57 people injured, no severe damage to industrial facilities

By Lim Chang-won Posted : November 16, 2017, 09:24 Updated : November 16, 2017, 09:24

[Yonhap Photo]



A 5.4-magnitude earthquake left 57 people injured in South Korea's southeastern industrial city with dozens of aftershocks causing cracks in many roads, homes, commercial buildings and utility facilities, according to preliminary official tallies.

The cabinet convened a meeting of economy-related ministers to assess damage from the quake that hit Pohang on Wednesday. Nuclear power plants have been under safety checks.

As of 6:00 am (2100 GMT) Thursday, 10 people were hospitalized and 47 others went home after treatment at hospitals, the government's disaster response center said in a preliminary report, adding 1,536 homeless people were staying at 27 gymnasiums and other temporary shelters.

A total of 1,098 homes and 84 commercial buildings were partially damaged, while 38 vehicles were destroyed, the center said.  Hundreds of cracks in buildings, roads, bridges and utility facilities were not counted. Crucial industrial facilities including nuclear power plants in Pohang and nearby areas reported no damage.

The epicenter was some nine kilometers north of the industrial port city of Pohang, home to South Korea's steel mill run by Posco.  The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) reported 33 aftershocks with magnitudes ranging from 2.0 to 4.3 by midnight Wednesday. Tremors were felt across the nation.

All schools in Pohang were closed, and a nationwide college entrance exam was put off by a week to November 23. Some 593,000 students were to take the College Scholastic Aptitude Test on Thursday at 1,180 schools.

It was the second-strongest quake to date since South Korea started collecting related data. In September last year, the nearby city of Gyeongju was battered by a 5.8-magnitude quake that left dozens of people.
 
 
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