Claim: Dutch researcher Frank Hoogerbeets tweeted a list of “safety rules [for] when an earthquake occurs”, including asking God for help.
Fact: Hoogerbeets did not tweet such a list.
On 8 February 2023, Twitter account @Frank_Hoogerbee (archive) posted a tweet stating “safety rules [for] when an earthquake occurs”.
According to @Frank_Hoogerbee, these rules are as follows:
“1- Ask Allah for help
2 – lie down on the floor
3 – Hold on tight
4 – Take shelter appropriately
5- Get out safely to a place free of construction and far from the building”
Frank Hoogerbeets is a Dutch researcher who works with the Solar System Geometry Survey (SSGEOS). The scientist shot to popularity following a tweet he posted on 3 February 2023 — three days before the devastating earthquakes in Turkey — in which he said: “Sooner or later there will be a ~M 7.5 #earthquake in this region (South-Central Turkey, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon).”
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check investigated the account since many Twitter users have started interacting with Hoogerbeets, who has warned of imposter accounts multiple times over the past few days.
The researcher asserted in a 7 February 2023 tweet that the “one and only #REAL Frank Hoogerbeets on Twitter is me (@hogrbe)”, warning that “the number of #FAKE accounts pretending to be me is growing [sic] rapidly”.
Hoogerbeets has asked followers to report the imposter accounts once on 6 February and twice on 7 February here and here; these accounts include @Frankhogreb, @hogrbe_Official, and @fr_hogrbe.
Numerous other accounts can be found here.
Moreover, the account that posted the tweet in question has the following text in its bio:
“أخبار الزلازل في الشرق الأوسط [Earthquake news in the middle east]،
Great respect for the planet especially the earth”.
The aforementioned text, however, is different from the bio provided in Hoogerbeets’ real account, which states:
“researcher @ssgeos – utmost respect for planets, especially Earth”.
Lastly, the real account — @hogrbe — has 1.3 million Twitter followers, whereas @Frank_Hoogerbee — the imposter account — has only 308 followers.
Virality
As of writing time, the tweet in question has received more than 15,900 views, as well as over 60 likes.
A screenshot of the tweet was also posted on Facebook here.
Conclusion: Dutch researcher Frank Hoogerbeets did not tweet a list of “safety rules [for] when an earthquake occurs”, which includes asking Allah for help. The list was tweeted by an impostor account.