“Bradyseism is not over and it is not excluded that there are other similar seismic phenomena”, the volcanologist Giuseppe De Natale stated a few days ago.
Just shortly after the Vesuvian Observatory had announced to the local administrations of Campania the end of the seismic swarm, yet another shock has arrived. The phenomenon that affected the area of Phlegraean Fields starting from March 7th, evidently, it is not “finished”.
The earth in the Campi Flegrei has shaken, again. Although the swarm seemed to have ended this morning, one new earthquake shock it was recorded at 12.58 today, Saturday 9 March. The earthquake had a magnitude of 1.4 on the Richter Scale and occurred along the stretch of sea in front of Lucrino, on the border between Pozzuoli and Bacoli, at a depth of only 1.3 kilometres.
Small tremors had been happening for 4 days, with 52 recorded in total. About ten of these were clearly felt by the population. The most intense, of magnitude 2.3, occurred on March 8. This would be a slowdown, perhaps temporary.
THE bradyseismic movements, those which have always characterized the Campi Flegrei area (west of Naples), had slowed down in December. This suggests that, even now, they are not finished. “Bradyseism is not over and it cannot be ruled out that there are other similar seismic phenomena,” stated Professor Giuseppe De Natale, volcanologist and research director of the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) a few days ago.
Meanwhile, the law on the Phlegraean Fields awaits a fundamental step. In fact, we need a “reparameterisation” of the red zone of bradyseismic risk. The new map will have to take into account not only the volcanic/seismic risk, but also the continuous stresses on buildings caused by micro-earthquakes associated with bradyseism. These are also damage factors for urban buildings.
There is space for training and awareness on the phenomenon. An event will be held on Monday 11 March at the Villaggio del Fanciullo in Pozzuoli meeting on volcanic phenomena of the Phlegraean Fields. The archaeologist Pierfrancesco Talamo, introduced by Professor Raffaella De Vivo and Professor Gea Palumbo, will talk about the “Ancient population of the Campi Flegrei”, analyzing the influence of volcanic phenomena on prehistoric settlements. The area, as anticipated, is known among the people who have inhabited it as seismically lively.
This seismic swarm of the last few days seems to have ended, but the situation in the Campi Flegrei remains uncertain. Bradyseism continues and the new risk map will provide a more precise assessment of the danger of the area. The meeting on Monday 11 March will offer the opportunity to deepen our knowledge of this land with such complex phenomena and which has always been shaped by the force of the volcano.
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