Quang Nam’s strongest quake since 1957 occurred in the province’s Bac Tra My District, where the Song Tranh 2 Hydropower Plant is located, yesterday afternoon. The quake, which measured 4.7 on the Richter scale, struck about three weeks after a 4.6 degree quake occurred in the district on October 23. The latest disaster began at 2:24 pm Thursday and lasted for several seconds, with an epicenter located about 6 km underground, said the Global Physics Institute. Thousands of locals rushed out of their houses in a panic after they heard loud blasts and felt the ground shaking, houses’ walls cracking, and items inside falling. The quake could be felt a few seconds later by people living in Da Nang City and different areas of Quang Ngai Province, such as Tay Tra, Tra Bong, Mo Duc, Ba To, Tu Nghia and Son Ha Districts and Quang Ngai City. Last night Construction Minister Trinh Dinh Dung told Tuoi Tre that he would visit the district today to oversee the condition of the hydropower plant. Meanwhile, the Electricity Group of Vietnam released a notice confirming that the plant’s dam remained in normal condition after the quake. The confirmation came after the Song Tranh 2 Hydropower Company and the Hydropower Project Management Unit 3 had examined the state of the plant’s facilities. As previously reported, the third strongest quake ever in the area occurred on September 3, measuring 4.2 degrees. The area has experienced more than 20 earthquakes over the past several months, which experts say have been induced by the plant’s reservoir, which is among the largest in Central Vietnam. Three earthquake observation stations have been installed in the district and two more will be set up there in the near future, according to the Global Physics Institute. On July 25, 1957 an earthquake measuring 4.8 on the Richter scale struck Bac Tra My, the Institute said.