Next 50-60 years to see frequent quakes: Expert

Frequent tremors may jolt Bangladesh and this regional part for the next 50-60 years, according to prediction of an earthquake expert.

The government should be prepared for loss minimisation in this regard, said Dr Mehedi Ahmed Ansary, of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology.

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"It's a natural cycle as only six quakes took place between 1869 and 1930," he told The Daily Star Online immediately after the country was jolted with major 7.4 earthquake that epicentred in the already devastated Nepal.

Explaining his forecast, he said the epicentre has been moving from fault lines of Nepal to Assam since 1869, it may again rotate from the opposite direction.

Dr Mehedi Ahmed Ansary, of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, an earthquake expert.

Though he said his prediction may differ from fact because it is a natural process, he stressed the need for immediate action from the government to minimize losses during the post-tremor period.

"We have already had our recommendations to the government and hope those will be implemented without delay," Ansary said.

Ansary explained that as there were six major quakes between 1869 and 1930

A fault line is a fissure in the earth plate that generates earthquakes. As the plates move along this fault lines, energy is generated and when it is released, it causes the tremors.

Earlier, strong 7.4 earthquake struck the already devastated Nepal this afternoon and rocked Dhaka and other parts of Bangladesh – in phases.

US Geological Survey tagged the first earthquake at 7.4 and said it epicentred 22 kilometres southeast of Zham, China – inside Nepal.

The calamity-scale earthquake that defaced Nepal on April 25 caused death over eight thousand people until now and injuries to at least 17,800 people.