They urged everyone to stay vigilant
A Dutch scientist has unveiled that Pakistan could be in for one of the most powerful earthquakes in its history within the next few days.
Researcher Frank Hoogerbeets hails from the Solar System Geometry Survey (SSGEOS) based in The Netherlands.
What’s raising eyebrows is the claim by this organisation that they’ve picked up unusual electric charge fluctuations dancing along the fault lines of Balochistan’s Chaman area.
According to them, this could be evidence of a catastrophe that could strike Pakistan.
strong fluctuations – potential for strong to major seismic event pic.twitter.com/8OhAv363mp
— SSGEOS (@ssgeos) September 30, 2023
Hoogerbeets himself has taken to social media to make this bold announcement, saying:
“Planetary geometry is difficult to interpret with four conjunctions spread out over the next 10 days.
“As far as I can tell, 1-3 October will be more critical.”
Naturally, such unproven predictions set Pakistani social media abuzz, prompting the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) to step in and clear the air.
Pakistani authorities wasted no time in dismissing these speculative claims.
On October 2, the PMD emphasised the sheer unpredictability of seismic activity.
Planetary geometry is difficult to interpret with four conjunctions spread out over the next 10 days. As far as I can tell, 1-3 October will be more critical. https://t.co/Cao2VExGNB
— Frank Hoogerbeets (@hogrbe) September 29, 2023
The Met Office explained that Pakistan lies right on the boundary where two massive tectonic plates meet, stretching from Sonmiani down to the northern reaches of the country.
It’s a hotspot for earthquakes, as these colossal plates don’t always play nice.
The last major shake-up along the Chaman fault line was way back in 1892 when a colossal earthquake, ranking between 9-10 on the Richter scale, shook the region.
The Met Office revealed an interesting tidbit, explaining:
“Usually, after the passage of 100 years, there is a possibility of a recurrence of an earthquake in the same boundary line.
“We have not received any kind of warning or instructions from any international organisation.”
With a word of caution, they urged everyone to stay vigilant against false news on social media and pointed out that Pakistan doesn’t have a fancy system for predicting tectonic plate movements.
Now, this isn’t Hoogerbeets’ first rodeo when it comes to making bold earthquake predictions.
Back in February, he made headlines by claiming that India and Pakistan were on the brink of experiencing massive earthquakes akin to the devastating quakes that rocked Turkey and Syria, claiming over 50,000 lives.
He explained:
“These areas could be the next candidate for larger seismic activity if we look at the atmospheric fluctuations.
“But again keep in mind that these are rough estimates and not all large earthquakes leave a footprint in the atmosphere they do not always announce themselves.”
Interestingly, no earthquake actually materialised in the Indian subcontinent following his previous prediction.