PICTORIAL: Anxiety Over Earth Movements In Plateau Community

A team of experts that carried out investigation on earth movements in Zot community of Barkin Ladi local government area of Plateau State, at the weekend, said there was no cause for alarm over the recent incident witnessed in the community.

Recall that on April 3, 2024, sudden earth movements were experienced in parts of Zot community, Barkin Ladi LGA of Plateau State. The movements were accompanied by large noises that sounded like explosions, leaving members of the community terrified as walls of some buildings were cracked while ceilings of some homes were shattered in the community.

The community immediately reported the incident to Barkin Ladi local government area authorities, who reported same to the State’s Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Minerals Development.

The Director (Exploration) in the Ministry, Mr. Samuel Jaryum, also visited the community on April 9, 2024, and confirmed the occurrence of the earth movements.

He then led a team of experts comprising Geoscientists from Geodesy Toro Centre for Remote Sensing in Jos and the Department of Geology, University of Jos, for detailed investigation to unravel the remote cause(s) of the earth movements following the approval of the state governor, Barr. Caleb Mutfwang.

The experts included Associate Prof. Raymond Daspan, who is the Head of Geology Department, University of Jos; Dr Ofonime Akpan (Seismologist), Assistant Director, Center for Geodesy and Geo Dynamics, and Dr Kehinde Ogunmola (Structural Geologist), Assistant Director, National Center for Remote Sensing, Jos.

According to a document released by the team, they carried out a detailed investigation from April 18 to 19, 2024, afterwhich they arrived at the conclusions that the earth movements were not likely a tremor or an earthquake and that it might be as a result of expansion and contraction of the rock due to the intense temperature that is being experienced lately, which led to release of pressure and subsequent cracking of the rocks and the buildings in the community.

They also disclosed that it might also be due to the lowering of the water level with the attendant release of water from fractures and cracks within the rock, which eventually led to a mechanical failure, hence the earth movements and loud noise observed by the members of the community.

The team, therefore, assured the community members that there was no need for panic and that further detailed investigation would be carried out to ascertain the exact cause(s) of the earth movements.