Earthquake or Fanquake? BTS Jin’s Return Sets Off Seismic Activity!

A Jeolla Province earthquake sparked amusing comments from the international ARMY (BTS’s fandom), drawing attention.

On June 12, at 8:26 AM, a 4.8 magnitude earthquake struck Buan County, Jeollabuk-do, the strongest earthquake of the year to stick the Korean Peninsula and its surrounding waters. BTS member Jin was released from the military on the same day as the earthquake. He was the first member to announce his return after serving 1 year and 6 months.

As news of the earthquake in Korea spread internationally, ARMYs around the world started leaving humorous comments in celebration of Jin’s return. Fans left comments such as “Seokjin is back,” “Even the earth knows Jin’s power,” “Jin has returned with an earthquake,” “It was the ARMYs supporting Jin’s discharge,” and “The power of ARMYs supporting Jin,” suggesting that the ARMYs caused the earthquake in celebration of Jin’s return.

Last July, Taylor Swift fans caused a 2.3-magnitude earthquake at her concert. Fans were so excited that they jumped around at the venue, which reportedly caused an actual earthquake. Geologist Jackie Caplan-Auerbach said, “After collecting earthquake data for the two days the concert was held, we quickly realized it was the same signal pattern.”

Many who were victims of the earthquake responded negatively to these fan comments.

Jin will fulfill his first schedule through the offline event 2024 Festa held in the Jamsil Sports Complex area in Seoul on June 13. Proposed by Jin, this event was organized to commemorate BTS’s debut anniversary on June 13, allowing fans to spend a meaningful time together. Fans are especially excited for the “Jin’s Greetings” segment, in which he will give hugs to a thousand ARMYs.