Croatia’s Seismological Service gets 20 new seismographs and accelerographs

ZAGREB, 13 January (Hina) – Croatia’s Seismological Service has received 20 sets of new seismographs and accelerographs with the relevant accessories worth HRK 4.5 million and this week they will be used to collect earthquake data in the areas struck by the recent devastating earthquakes.

The Ministry of Science and Education financed the procurement for the Science Faculty and Minister Radovan Fuchs inspected the new equipment on Wednesday.

“I would like to thank the Seismological Service for everything it has done so far. Unfortunately, the Seismological Service goes unnoticed and only comes to the surface in unfortunate circumstances when huge disasters occur,” said Fuchs.

The Seismological Service has prepared a new project worth about HRK 100 million and the funds have been secured from EU funds. Fuchs believes that the necessary paperwork will be completed in a month or so for  the procurement of additional equipment.

“We have a lot of reasons to believe the Service will be brought to a level and ranking that is usual in some other countries,” he added.

Asked whether it was necessary for this disaster to occur before the Service was issued with the equipment, Fuchs said that the service should have had the equipment much sooner. In this case the government acted promptly, he said.

Dean Mirko Planinić said that the equipment was procured in record time.

“I don’t recall when the government and faculty had ever responded so quickly…This equipment will be installed at the epicentre. This is mobile equipment that will provide us with very valuable data and teach us how to handle earthquakes in the future,” said Dean Planinić.