Categorized | Earthquake, News

Strong 6.9M quake in Chile, no tsunami threat Tuesday (Nov 10)

Magnitude
6.9

Time
2015-11-11 01:54:37 (UTC)
2015-11-10 15:54:37 HST

Nearby Cities
93km (58mi) NW of Coquimbo, Chile
97km (60mi) WNW of La Serena, Chile
150km (93mi) WNW of Vicuna, Chile
155km (96mi) NW of Ovalle, Chile
466km (290mi) NNW of Santiago, Chile

TSUNAMI INFORMATION STATEMENT NUMBER 2
NWS PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER EWA BEACH HI
0304 UTC WED NOV 11 2015

...PTWC TSUNAMI SUPPLEMENT STATEMENT...

NOTE THE REVISED EARTHQUAKE MAGNITUDE AND DEPTH... AND THE
OBSERVATION OF SMALL TSUNAMI WAVES.

PRELIMINARY EARTHQUAKE PARAMETERS... UPDATED
--------------------------------------------

 * MAGNITUDE      6.9
 * ORIGIN TIME    0155 UTC NOV 11 2015
 * COORDINATES    29.4 SOUTH  72.3 WEST
 * DEPTH          16 KM / 10 MILES
 * LOCATION       OFF THE COAST OF CENTRAL CHILE

EVALUATION
----------

 * AN EARTHQUAKE WITH A PRELIMINARY MAGNITUDE OF 6.9 OCCURRED
   OFF THE COAST OF CENTRAL CHILE AT 0155 UTC ON WEDNESDAY
   NOVEMBER 11 2015.

 * SMALL TSUNAMI WAVES HAVE BEEN OBSERVED.

RECOMMENDED ACTIONS
-------------------

 * PERSONS ALONG COASTAL AREAS NEAR THE EARTHQUAKE SHOULD BE
   OBSERVANT AND EXERCISE NORMAL CAUTION. OTHERWISE... NO ACTION
   IS REQUIRED.

OBSERVATIONS
------------

 * TSUNAMI WAVES WITH A MAXIMUM AMPLITUDE OF 15 CM WERE OBSERVED
   AT COQUIMBO... CHILE... AND 10 CM AT HUASCO... CHILE.

NEXT UPDATE AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
--------------------------------------

 * THIS WILL BE THE FINAL STATEMENT ISSUED FOR THIS EVENT UNLESS
   NEW INFORMATION IS RECEIVED OR THE SITUATION CHANGES.

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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