Mangaluru: If you live in the Coastal distrcts of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Uttara Kannada, the probability of an earthquake occurring in your backyard is low. If it does occur, you can expect tremors but no major impact. This is the verdict of the seismic experts based on the official classisfication of these coastal districts as a Moderate Intensity Zone.

Based on the seismic history, the country has been grouped into four seismic zones. They are ll – Low intensity zone, lll – Moderate intensity zone, lV – Severe intensity zone and V – Very Severe intensity zone. While Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Uttara Kannada, Vijapura, Kalaburgi and parts of Bidar and Dharawad are classified under Moderate intensity zone, part of Dakshina Kannada attached to Kodagu and all other districts in the state fall under Low Intensity Zone, according to the Director of Pilikula Regional Science Centre Dr K V Rao.

Severity of an earthquake measuring 4 o 5 on the Richter scale indicates light vibration which causes no harm. Severity measuring 7 to 9 suggests severe destruction and impact measuring 9 or above means total destruction and there will hardly be any chances of survival.

While a total of 13 Seismic Stations are installed in the state, there is no such facility in Mangaluru, possibly as the chances of an earthquake are low according to various studies.  However, it is learnt that a proposal has been sent to the state government for setting up a Seismic Station here and the District Administration is likely to earmark a plot near the DC’s bungalow or the  Circuit House as they are situated in high altitude areas.