September 20, 2020 – After a few minor earthquakes in the past few days, Croatia was hit by a stronger earthquake, this time in Dalmatia, near Gračac. As Index.hr reports, on Sunday, around 12:55 PM, Gračac was hit by an earthquake measuring 4.2 on the Richter scale, and it was felt throughout Dalmatia.

The EMSC's first report was that the earthquake was 4.2 magnitude, then 4.0. However, the Croatian Seismological Service reports that the earthquake was 4.2 magnitude on the Richter scale.

The earthquake was recorded 88 kilometers northwest of Split, 12 kilometers southwest of Gračac, and 51 kilometers east of Zadar. It was recorded at a depth of 10 kilometers.

#potres (#earthquake) 20.09. u 12:55, kod Gračaca, M4.2. Ispričavamo se zbog poteškoća s radom internetske stranice.

— Seizmološka služba HR (@seizmo_hr) September 20, 2020

Felt throughout Dalmatia

One Gračac resident said that the earthquake was short-lived, but was quite noticeable. According to the comments on the EMSC application, the earthquake was felt all over Dalmatia, so the citizens of Zadar, Šibenik, Split, and other towns felt it.

“We felt the earthquake on Pag, it was quite strong,” readers from Pag report.

“Split, in the wider center, 7th floor in a skyscraper, 3 light hits, like banging. There was no shaking. Altogether it went on for 3-4 seconds,” said one reader from Split.

“It was quite well felt in Biograd. It lasted for 10-15 seconds and there was some rocking. In the end, it roared,” said one reader from Biograd.

“The earthquake was felt even in Drniš and it was not pleasant at all,” one reader informed.

Felt #earthquake (#potres) M4.2 strikes 51 km E of #Zadar (#Croatia) 6 min ago. Please report to: https://t.co/v0KHd5M27G pic.twitter.com/yItrXGxEjA

— EMSC (@LastQuake) September 20, 2020

Readers from Kaštela report they felt the earthquake too.

“At 1 PM an earthquake was felt in the area of Split. We felt it in Kaštela. It didn't last long, but it shook us well,” said one reader.

There is no official data on the strength of the earthquake and its epicenter on the website of the Croatian Seismological Service. In addition, it is not known whether there was any material damage.

Strong earthquake, but without material damage

Seismologist Krešimir Kuk said that the earthquake that hit the area around Gračac on Sunday was strong, but there were no reports of material damage. He also stressed that this earthquake should not be associated with earthquakes from the Zagreb epicentral area because they are not directly related.

“The earthquake was moderately strong to strong. Therefore, it was a strong earthquake that manifested itself and was felt significantly in the narrower epicentral area, which caused great concern among the citizens. It was felt in the wider area, all the way to Zadar, Biograd, Knin,” Kuk told N1 television.

He added that the area around Gračac, Knin, and the southern part of the coast is also very seismically active and earthquakes occur there.

"It was a strong earthquake, but not so strong that it should cause material damage, and we hope that it's normal seismic activity," concluded seismologist Krešimir Kuk.

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As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 8th of April, 2019, the Cerovac caves are some of the most interesting geomorphological attractions nature has to offer in Croatia, and the caves were originally set up for visitors back in 1951.

The ''Cerovac caves'' centre of excellence deals with the sustainable management of natural heritage and karst underground, and this new tourist project should be able to get completely off the ground in two to three years, writes Večernji list.

The Cerovac cave project is being carried by the the Velebit Nature Park public institution (JUPP Velebit) and the project's partners, which include the Zagreb Speleological Association, Zadar County and the public institution for the protection of nature of Zadar County, Natura Jadera.

''The total value of the project stands at 68.5 million kuna, out of which approximately 53 million kuna of non-refundable money is being granted by EU funds, and the rest of the money, along with that of the project's partners, will be provided by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Energy and the Environmental Protection Fund,'' stated the president of the Zagreb Speleological Association and historian Stipe Tutiš, who was immediately followed by architect Roman Šilje, who went on to explain the meaning behind and the ultimate goal of the whole project.

''In southeastern Velebit, in Crnopac just above Gračac, the largest natural speleological sight in the Dinaric karst, the Cerovac caves, can be found. So far, only the ipper and lower Cerovac caves were visible and accessible, but owing to the passage of time and to the Homeland War, they remained neglected. Therefore, Croatian speleologists, as the initiators of this project, have begun with all of their other partners to return to this unique karst phenomenon and give it the importance it deserves, so, back in 2010, we started with the development of this project. Five years later, the project documentation got started, which was funded by the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund.

In October 2016, the project was submitted to the Operational Program for Competitiveness and Cohesion 2014-2020. The evaluation lasted from October 2016 to April last year, and on April the 4th, 2018, around one year ago, an agreement was signed with the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds,'' concluded Šilje.

Make sure to follow our dedicated lifestyle page for more information on current projects in Croatia and much more.