What you shouldn't believe about the Jiuzhaigou quake

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In the midst of the tragedy, some of what's spreading online about the 7.0-magnitude earthquake in Jiuzhaigou is false.

'Earthquake cloud' not an accurate way to predict earthquake

Photo via the Internet

Before the earthquake, netizens had uploaded pictures online about sheets of clouds in cities like Xi'an and Zhengzhou. Many naturally believe the clouds were some earthquake omens.

However, Li Ting, an atmospheric physics expert from the Chinese Academy of Sciences said that the so-called "earthquake cloud" is not generally accepted in the scientific community, though it is considered as a research topic.

China Meteorological Administration also made it clear that there's no "abundant proof" between earthquake and weather.

Tilted building not in Jiuzhaigou

Photo via the Internet

A photo showing a building leaning to one side and nearly hitting the nearby buildings has spread rampantly online since last night. The caption claimed it's a hotel in Jiuzhaigou after the earthquake.

The truth is this picture was taken on February 6, 2016, when a 6.7-magnitude earthquake in Kaohsiung City in Taiwan.

Aftershocks predictions not confirmed

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Shortly after the earthquake on Tuesday night, a “notice” circulating online claimed that aftershocks would hit provinces like Shaanxi, Gansu and Qinghai at 3 a.m. on Wednesday. None of them have been confirmed to have happened.

Scientists point out that such accurate predictions with the exact hour of when the aftershocks will come are completely beyond the current scientific and technological knowledge.

Moreover, the notice was released in the name of "Sichuan Branch of China Earthquake Administration." There is no such an organization. The province only as the Sichuan Earthquake Administration.

Don't get trapped by scam message!

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Scam messages even appeared to take advantage of people's compassion and sympathy.

In the name of "earthquake rescue center", the message asked people to donate money to a certain bank account. It claimed that the money they collect would be allotted to help people in the quake-hit areas. It even said that they would return people who donate in double value after the disaster.