Small earthquake jolts Andaman coast
source: TNA Sunday Sept 16 2007
An earthquake with a magnitude of 4.7 on the Richter scale occurred in the Andaman Sea Sunday morning, the chief of Thailand's Meteorological Department announced.
Director-General Suparerk Tansriratanawong said the earthquake struck the Andaman Sea, about 600 kilometers from the Thai southern province of Ranong at 8.08am Thailand time (0108 GMT).
No injuries or damage was reported, according to Mr Suparerk.
He added the cause of the quake was probably the result of a moving fault line beneath the Andaman Sea.
Sunday morning's mild quake came after earthquakes struck Indonesia for the third consecutive day yesterday. The 8.4-magnitude quake that shook Southeast Asian countries on Wednesday had killed at least 14 people while thousands became homeless in that country. The tremors were also felt in Bangkok.
Pramon Sutheewong, chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, said the series of earthquakes that struck Indonesia and could be felt in Bangkok and surrounding areas last week would not affect investment in Thailand even after the government warned that Bangkok would be at risk from quakes.
Business operators will only have to invest more on constructing buildings which could withstand the impact of earthquakes, said Mr Pramon.
His comments were made amid reports that the Interior Ministry is drafting a regulation requiring buildings in Bangkok and its nearby provinces to be designed in such a way to withstand earthquakes. Buildings in these provinces could be affected from quakes due to their soft soil. (TNA)
