Magnitude
4.1
Date-Time
Friday, February 24, 2012 at 07:02:24 UTC
Thursday, February 23, 2012 at 09:02:24 PM at epicenter
Location
19.436°N, 155.313°W
Depth
5.2 km (3.2 miles)
Region
ISLAND OF HAWAII, HAWAII
Distances
8 km (5 miles) W (259°) from Volcano, HI
20 km (12 miles) WSW (258°) from Fern Forest, HI
21 km (13 miles) WSW (237°) from Mountain View, HI
38 km (24 miles) SW (218°) from Hilo, HI
335 km (208 miles) SE (128°) from Honolulu, HI

A light earthquake occurred at 9:02:24 PM (HST) on Thursday, February 23, 2012 .
The magnitude 4.1 event occurred 4 km (3 miles) WNW of Kilauea Summit.
The hypocentral depth is 5 km ( 3 miles).

TSUNAMI SEISMIC INFORMATION STATEMENT NUMBER 2
NWS PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER EWA BEACH HI
906 PM HST THU FEB 23 2012

TO – CIVIL DEFENSE IN THE STATE OF HAWAII

SUBJECT – LOCAL TSUNAMI INFORMATION STATEMENT

THIS STATEMENT IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY. NO ACTION REQUIRED.

AN EARTHQUAKE HAS OCCURRED WITH THESE PRELIMINARY PARAMETERS

ORIGIN TIME – 0902 PM HST 23 FEB 2012
COORDINATES – 19.4 NORTH 155.3 WEST
LOCATION – IN THE SUMMIT REGION OF KILAUEA VOLCANO
MAGNITUDE – 4.1

EVALUATION

NO TSUNAMI IS EXPECTED. REPEAT. NO TSUNAMI IS EXPECTED. HOWEVER…SOME AREAS MAY HAVE EXPERIENCED SHAKING.

THIS WILL BE THE ONLY STATEMENT ISSUED FOR THIS EVENT UNLESS ADDITIONAL DATA ARE RECEIVED.

See story about Wednesday’s earthquake swarm

USGS: How large does an earthquake have to be to cause a tsunami?

Magnitudes below 6.5
Earthquakes of this magnitude are very unlikely to trigger a tsunami.

Magnitudes between 6.5 and 7.5
Earthquakes of this size do not usually produce destructive tsunamis. However, small sea level changes may be observed in the vicinity of the epicenter. Tsunamis capable of producing damage or casualties are rare in this magnitude range but have occurred due to secondary effects such as landslides or submarine slumps.

Magnitudes between 7.6 and 7.8
Earthquakes of this size may produce destructive tsunamis especially near the epicenter; at greater distances small sea level changes may be observed. Tsunamis capable of producing damage at great distances are rare in the magnitude range.

Magnitude 7.9 and greater
Destructive local tsunamis are possible near the epicenter, and significant sea level changes and damage may occur in a broader region.

Note that with a magnitude 9.0 earthquake, the probability of an aftershock with a magnitude exceeding 7.5 is not negligible. To date, the largest aftershock recorded has been magnitude 7.1 that did not produce a damaging tsunami.

You might be interested in:

1. 6.2M earthquake offshore Mexico, no tsunami advisory issued for Hawaii
2. 6.7M earthquake strikes Mexico Saturday (Dec 10), no tsunami threat
3. 7.0M earthquake strikes off Chile, no tsunami threat to Hawaii
4. 7.0M earthquake strikes Peru, no tsunami threat to Hawaii
5. Minor 3.0M earthquake strikes Laupahoehoe mauka Wednesday (May 18)