The Federal Government has intensified seismic monitoring in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) after a mild earth tremor was detected in parts of Abuja, assuring residents that the event poses no immediate threat to lives or infrastructure.
The tremor, recorded by the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency (NGSA) on Tuesday, prompted the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, to direct increased surveillance and regular updates on seismic activities within and around the nation’s capital.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, August 5, 2026, by his Special Assistant on Media, Lara Owoeye-Wise, Alake ordered the NGSA to maintain close monitoring and provide technical reports to support further government action.
He urged residents to remain calm, noting that preliminary findings showed the tremor was too weak to cause damage.
The NGSA said its seismic station in Utako detected the movement at exactly 11:23:27 a.m. on Tuesday. The agency reported that the tremor originated at a depth of about one kilometre and travelled approximately four kilometres within five seconds.
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It classified the event as a light tremor measuring between Levels I and II on the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale, explaining that the movement could cause brief shaking but was not strong enough to damage buildings or infrastructure.
The incident comes nearly two years after a series of low-intensity tremors unsettled parts of Abuja, particularly Mpape and Katampe, in September 2024.
The NGSA recorded multiple seismic events during that period and attributed them to natural underground stress release along geological fault structures, while concluding that they posed no immediate danger.
Unlike the 2024 episode, which involved repeated tremors over several days, the latest event was assessed as a single mild occurrence, with authorities maintaining surveillance as a precautionary measure.
Alake, who is currently in Washington, D.C., United States, for engagements with potential investors in Nigeria’s solid minerals sector, assured residents that the government would continue to rely on scientific assessments from the NGSA to guide its response.