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A magnitude 5.6 earthquake that occurred on the morning of this Sunday southeast of Imías has raised alarms again in the eastern provinces.
The event was felt in Guantánamo, Santiago de Cuba, and Granma, and according to scientific authorities, it was followed by around 30 aftershocks in the first two hours following the main tremor.
In the first hour, 21 were recorded and in the second hour another 12, none of which were reported as perceptible by the population.
Nevertheless, the main tremor was felt in numerous locations in Guantánamo, Santiago de Cuba, and Granma, with even reports coming from Holguín.
The National Center for Seismological Research (CENAIS) reported that the highest authorities of the Party and Government of Santiago de Cuba visited the Central Seismological Station to learn about the details of the tremor and the subsequent behavior of the seismic sequence.
Experts clarified that the tremor did not create conditions for a tsunami, so any alerts of that kind were ruled out.
In addition, the executives of CENAIS provided an update on the results of the recent GEOMARHIS campaign, conducted aboard the research vessel RRS James Cook, which contributed key information for a better understanding of the seismic and tsunami threats in this region of the Caribbean.
The official call to the public was to stay informed through institutional channels and to follow the guidelines from Civil Protection.
The Head of the National Seismological Service, Enrique Diego Arango Arias, explained that the network of stations recorded the earthquake at 7:00 a.m. (local time), with coordinates 20.16° north latitude and 74.44° west longitude, at a depth of 7.1 km, located 24 km southeast of Imías.
The CENAIS located the earthquake 30 km southeast of Imías, a typical variation according to the calculation methods.
As of the writing of this note, no material or human damage has been reported. Scientific authorities recommended staying calm, checking for potential vulnerable structures, and remaining attentive to official information.
On social media, dozens of Cubans shared their experiences of how they lived through the moment.
"Strong, very strong, it shook my house," wrote a user from Palma Soriano.
From Moa, Holguín, another person commented: "It felt very strong."
In Santiago, residents of Garzón and Versalles agreed that the tremor caught them off guard in the early morning: "It took me out of bed," one of them wrote.
The eastern region of Cuba is one of the areas with the highest seismic activity in the country due to its proximity to the Oriente Fault, which marks the boundary between the Caribbean and North American tectonic plates.
For this reason, scientists emphasize the importance of constant monitoring and campaigns like GEOMARHIS to enhance the understanding of risk.
The earthquake this Sunday and its more than 30 aftershocks serve as a reminder that the threat is real, even though this time no damage has occurred.
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