Categorized | Earthquake, News

3.3 magnitude quake epicenter near Waikoloa Village Monday (April 9)

Magnitude
3.3
Date-Time
Monday, April 09, 2012 at 22:24:03 UTC
Monday, April 09, 2012 at 12:24:03 PM at epicenter
Location
19.974°N, 155.775°W
Depth
24.2 km (15.0 miles)
Region
ISLAND OF HAWAII, HAWAII
Distances
4 km (3 miles) NNE (27°) from Waikoloa Village, HI
11 km (6 miles) ENE (63°) from Puako, HI
12 km (8 miles) WSW (243°) from Waimea, HI
78 km (48 miles) WNW (293°) from Hilo, HI
260 km (162 miles) SE (124°) from Honolulu, HI

By Hawaii 24/7 Staff

A 3.3 magnitude earthquake struck north of Waikoloa Village in Puako at 12:24 p.m. Monday (April 9).

The temblor’s epicenter was 16 miles deep with reports on Twitter of shaking felt in Waikoloa and Waimea.

The area of today’s quake is East of the October 15, 2006 strong 6.7 magnitude quake off-shore Puako which rocked the the island and was felt throughout the state. The 2006 quake caused major damage in some places and caused power outages on the Big Island, Maui and Oahu.

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.

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