Petrinja, Croatia December 29, 2020, Mw 6.4 Earthquake Joint Reconnaissance Report (JRR)

Abstract

On December 29, 2020 a magnitude 6.4 earthquake occurred in the Sisak-Moslavina county of Croatia. The earthquake occurred along the Popusko-Petrinja strike slip fault within the Eurasia plate at a depth of 10 km with an epicenter at 45.422°N 16.255°E, three kilometers (km) west-southwest of the city of Petrinja. The maximum intensity of the earthquake was VII (severe) on the Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) scale and VIII (heavily damaging) to IX (destructive) on the European Macroseismic Scale (EMS). Due to the earthquake and resulting damage, there were seven fatalities, 26 people were injured, and many hundreds of people were displaced from their homes. The most affected city was Petrinja, but severe damage also occurred in Sisak, Dvor, Glina, Topusko, as well as in Croatia’s capital Zagreb, located approximately 50 km northwest of the epicenter. Damage was also reported in neighboring countries, including Slovenia, located north of Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, located south of this region of Croatia. The purpose of this post-earthquake reconnaissance report is to provide, within a few days of the earthquake, an overview of the hazard characteristics and to summarize preliminary reports of damage to buildings, bridges, roads, and other infrastructure. Moreover, key findings are also summarized with regard to geotechnical failures that include liquefaction, lateral spreading, landslides, sinkholes and damage to the extended levee system along the Kupa, Odra and Sava rivers.