Tremor rocks Abuja, but how real is Nigeria’s earthquake risk?

A minor earth tremor that shook parts of Abuja on Tuesday, August 4, has renewed questions about whether Nigeria is vulnerable to earthquakes, even though the country lies outside the world’s major seismic zones. According to Punch Newspapers, the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency’s (NGSA) monitoring station in Utako detected the tremor at 11:23:27am, originating from a depth of one kilometre and spreading four kilometres within five seconds. The agency classified it as a “light event” of I to II magnitude on the Mercalli scale, too weak to cause structural damage.

Solid Minerals Development Minister Dele Alake directed the NGSA to provide hourly updates and urged residents to remain calm, assuring them there was no threat to lives or property, Punch reported.

Nigeria is not situated on a major tectonic plate boundary and is generally considered to have low seismic activity. However, isolated tremors have recurred over the decades in states including Abuja, Kaduna, Kogi, Oyo and Bayelsa, according to Punch. Documented tremors date back to 1933, with notable instrumentally recorded events in 1984 at Ijebu-Ode, 1990 at Ibadan, and 2000 at Jushi Kwari, according to YEN.com.gh. Many earlier tremors went unrecorded due to the absence of functional seismological observatories at the time.

Experts cited by Punch note that while most of these events are minor and rarely cause significant damage, their recurrence underscores the need for continued seismic monitoring and emergency preparedness. The NGSA, Nigeria’s foremost geoscience agency, operates a network of stations nationwide to track earth movements and support disaster readiness.

The Abuja tremor is the latest in a string of similar events; Legit.ng also reported a separate tremor incident in Saki, Oyo State, where the federal government dispatched experts to assess potential damage.

While Tuesday’s tremor caused no casualties or structural damage, officials say sustained monitoring remains essential given Nigeria’s history of sporadic, low-intensity seismic activity, even as the country stays outside the planet’s principal earthquake belts.