The Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts (HAZU) said that the earthquakes that have hit Croatia recently, the COVID-19 pandemic and floods in the country have raised awareness of the importance of education on natural disasters.

HAZU said on Tuesday that children since early age should be taught about natural disasters, including earthquakes, as well as about dangers stemming from health crises and climate change. In this context HAZU calls for updating the curriculum so that children could be educated about such phenomena in nature, protection and dealing with the consequences of disasters.

HAZU also called on media not only to report on the consequences of natural disasters but also to help reduce panic by calling for patience until the completion of seismic activity. They also called for quake-proof construction and in this context underscored the example of Japan.

Four quakes with magnitude of 6 and above on Richter scale since start of measuring

The academy said that since the start of measuring and recording seismic activity in Croatia, twenty earthquakes have been above 5.5 magnitude on the Richter scale. To date, the strongest tremors registered in Croatia happened in Imotski, in the Dalmatian hinterland, which was hit by a 6.2 magnitude quake in 1942, in the coastal town of Makarska , a 6.1 quake in 1962, and also the coastal areas of Ston and Slano with a 6-magnitute quake in 1996 and the latest one of 6.2 magnitude in Petrinja on 29 December 2020.