6.3 magnitude quake shakes up Almaty

    A 6.3 magnitude earthquake has struck 227 km from Almaty, Tengrinews.kz reports, citing the European-Mediterranean Seismological Center.
    The quake was recorded on January 28 at 22.38, Astana time. The epicenter was 227 km to the east of Almaty at a depth of 10 km.
    The earthquake was clearly felt in Almaty city as an unusually long series of very tangible horizontal swings that lasted for 3 or 4 minutes.
    Ceilings lamps swung and windows were reported to crack. The quake resulted in many residents rushing out of buildings.
    "It felt like a 6 magnitude," they said. Many kept their nerves, however, with one calling it, "a pajama party in the street".
    According to the Seismological Research Expedition under the Science Committee of Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Education and Science, the quake’s energy class was 15.1. The coordinates of the epicenter were 42.64 northern latitude, 79.57 eastern longitude. There are no reports of casualties.
    The tremor was followed by three more quakes of increasing magnitude in the Almaty Oblast according to the Seismological Research Expedition.
    A 4.5-magnitude earthquake was recorded at 23.09 Astana time, 225 km to southeast of Almaty.
    Then a 4.7 earthquake was registered at 23.12 232 km southeast of Almaty and a 5.1 tremor 23.31 225 km southeast of Almaty, www.tengrinews.kz states.