UAE quake moment: 'I was in the loo'

Offices have been evacuated in Jebel Ali after the earthquake today afternoon. (Supplied)

Published Thursday, April 18, 2013

Several UAE residents recalled the ‘terrifying’ moment when the first tremors sent shockwaves across the country yesterday, resulting in buildings being evacuated as a 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit the Iran-Pakistan border yesterday.

Many residents were relaxing at home during their mid-afternoon siesta hours, with

Suman Shafi writing in to say: “I was about to start a movie on my laptop when the bed started shaking. As I turned around, my TV was moving too. I freaked out and ran out of the room.”

Sajeer Moidu said: “I was lying in bed at the time and my bed and tube light shook heavily. We ran outside the room. We were in shock.”

Rahim Khan said: “I felt it at home in Sharjah, Al Ghafiya area, and was having my lunch with my father.

“We saw the sofa was moving and the water in the glass was moving from side to side. And the sound of the Earth was scary.”

Chris Evert Barbero-Islam wrote: “ I was sleeping and was shocked when I opened my eyes; the cabinets were swinging, my bed was moving. I also felt scared. This is the first time I experienced that strong a magnitude quake.”

Farooque Siddiqui simply said: “I was in the toilet.”

Meanwhile, several were in their offices when the quake hit.

Chyna Mendoza-Jonas Willcox, who was in a high-rise, said: “This is the first time I have experienced this in a high rise and although we are only seven floors up, I felt like I was going to fall out as the building swayed.”

Arsalan Ahmed, from Fujairah, where the tremors were much stronger due its proximity to the epicentre, wrote: “I was filing documents in my Fujairah office and all of sudden files started to shake and the air condition set off a horrible sound.”

Ali Abid said: “I was in office and I felt my chair moving. I thought it's a quake but I ignored it. After this some one asked me ‘did u feel an earthquake?’

“Suddenly I jumped from my chair and saw from my window that a lot of people stood outside their buildings.”

There were others, of course, who reportedly felt nothing.

Noman Haroon wrote: “I am walking towards my car and I really did not feel any thing and suddenly I saw that so many people were running from the buildings. I asked one person what’s going on and he informed me about the earthquake.”

Kirti Kumar Salunke said: “There were no shocks experienced in The Greens and The Views even when the other quake happened last week.”

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