As residents of northern Israel were turning in for the night, a 3.8 magnitude earthquake originating at the Sea of Galilee (Kinneret) jolted them awake on Sunday.
The Geophysical Institute of Israel reported that the short and mild earthquake, which was felt by residents of Metula, Tiberius, Acco, Nahariya and Kiryat Shmona, began around the area of the Sea of Galilee and Hula valley. No damage or injuries have been reported.
This is not the first time the North has been affected by earthquakes – or even the first time this year. Mild earthquakes also hit the country in August and April, causing no damage or injuries. However, major earthquakes taking place in northern Israel in 1759 and 1837 were catastrophic, killing thousands of people and twice razing the city of Tzfat.
In July, chairman of the National Economic Council Professor Eugene Kendal told Israel Army Radio that Israel is not financially prepared for the next large earthquake.
In March, a report by State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss predicted that a 7.5 “worst-case scenario” earthquake in northern Israel could “cause 16,000 deaths, 6,000 seriously injured, 83,000 lightly injured, 377,000 evacuated from their homes,” breaks in sewage pipes and the National Water Carrier, electric outages, and the partial collapse of two overpasses near Haifa.