MAGNITUDE 5.5 EARTHQUAKE HITS ETHIOPIA AS VOLCANO ERUPTS

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A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck northern Ethiopia Friday, where a volcano erupted after months of increased seismic activity, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) and local media said.

The EMSC said the quake, which occurred at a depth of about 10 kilometres (6 miles), hit some 55 kilometres (34 miles) northwest of the city of Asbe Teferi.

No injuries have been reported so far.

A nearby volcano also erupted after months of intense seismic activity, according to local media.

Aden Bela, a local official, told the Ethiopian broadcaster EBC that the volcanic eruption had taken place at 5:30 am on Friday (1430 GMT) near Segento in the northeast Afar region.

The crater had stopped releasing smoke, but lava was still flowing out of the volcano, Bela added. People and cattle have been evacuated, he said, without giving numbers.

The US Geological Survey since late September has recorded more than 67 earthquakes in the area, particularly in the Fantale region, part of the Great Rift Valley, according to the Addis Standard.

Residents in affected areas told the newspaper that more than 30 houses had collapsed where tremors have become more frequent and more violent.

“Houses are collapsing day by day,” one local resident told the newspaper.

AFP