Child dies in 6.4 magnitude Croatia earthquake

Zagreb (Reuters) – An earthquake of magnitude 6.4 struck a town in central Croatia on Tuesday, killing a child, injuring many people and wrecking houses, officials said.

The GFZ German Research center for Geosciences said the quake hit at a depth of 10 kilometer (6 miles).

The N1 news channel reported that the epicenter was in the town of Petrinja, 50 kilometer from Croatia’s capital Zagreb.

N1 quoted a Petrinja town official as saying that a 12-year old child in Petrinja had been killed, but gave no details.

It showed footage of rescuers there pulling out a man and a child from the debris. Both were alive.

Other footage showed a house with a roof caved in. The reporter said she did not know if anyone was inside.

Tomislav Fabijanic, head of emergency medical service in Sisak near Petrinja, said there were many injured in Petrinja and in Sisak.

“There are fractures, there are concussions and some had to be operated on,” he said.

Slovenia’s STA news agency said that the country’s sole nuclear power plant which is 100 kilometer from the epicenter was shut down as a precaution.

There was no further information available on casualties.

The quake could be felt in the capital Zagreb, where people rushed onto the streets, some strewn with broken roof tiles and other debris. It was also felt in neighboring Bosnia and Serbia.

On Monday a magnitude 5.2 earthquake hit central Croatia, also near Petrinja. In March, an earthquake of magnitude 5.3 hit Zagreb causing one death and injuring 27 people.