False Alarm: GFZ's Erroneous Thailand Earthquake Alert Sparks Confusion

The German Research Centre for Geosciences mistakenly issued and later withdrew, an advisory about a non-existent earthquake in Thailand, caused by a glitch. The mix-up followed a real quake off Borneo. Thailand's meteorological service confirmed no such earthquake occurred in the country.

The German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) withdrew an advisory from its website stating a magnitude 6.5 earthquake had struck Thailand early Monday. The misleading alert was attributed to a glitch in the agency's automated system.

A GFZ spokesperson clarified that there was no actual quake in Thailand, and the inaccurate alert followed a genuine report about a quake near Borneo, which remains active. Thailand's meteorological service confirmed that there was no earthquake with an epicenter in the nation.

This incident highlights the occasional inaccuracies that can occur in automated systems, as GFZ and other public bodies continuously update seismic reports to reflect the most accurate information available, at times having to retract false reports.