Categorized | Earthquake, News

Very strong 7.1M quake in Indonesia, no tsunami threat


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Magnitude
7.1

Event Time
2014-11-15 02:31:40 UTC
2014-11-15 10:31:40 UTC+08:00 at epicenter
2014-11-14 16:31:40 HST

Location
1.928°N 126.547°E depth=35.0km (21.7mi)

Nearby Cities
156km (97mi) NW of Kota Ternate, Indonesia
156km (97mi) NW of Ternate, Indonesia
160km (99mi) ENE of Bitung, Indonesia
164km (102mi) W of Tobelo, Indonesia
1064km (661mi) SW of Koror Town, Palau

TSUNAMI MESSAGE NUMBER 4
NWS PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER EWA BEACH HI
0431 UTC SAT NOV 15 2014

...PTWC FINAL TSUNAMI THREAT MESSAGE...


**** NOTICE **** NOTICE **** NOTICE **** NOTICE **** NOTICE *****

THIS MESSAGE IS ISSUED FOR INFORMATION ONLY IN SUPPORT OF THE
UNESCO/IOC PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING AND MITIGATION SYSTEM AND IS
MEANT FOR NATIONAL AUTHORITIES IN EACH COUNTRY OF THAT SYSTEM.

NATIONAL AUTHORITIES WILL DETERMINE THE APPROPRIATE LEVEL OF
ALERT FOR EACH COUNTRY AND MAY ISSUE ADDITIONAL OR MORE REFINED
INFORMATION.

**** NOTICE **** NOTICE **** NOTICE **** NOTICE **** NOTICE *****


PRELIMINARY EARTHQUAKE PARAMETERS
---------------------------------

 * MAGNITUDE      7.3
 * ORIGIN TIME    0232 UTC NOV 15 2014
 * COORDINATES    1.9 NORTH  126.7 EAST
 * DEPTH          40 KM / 25 MILES
 * LOCATION       HALMAHERA  INDONESIA


EVALUATION
----------

 * AN EARTHQUAKE WITH A PRELIMINARY MAGNITUDE OF 7.3 OCCURRED IN
   HALMAHERA, INDONESIA AT 0232 UTC ON SATURDAY NOVEMBER 15 2014.

 * BASED ON ALL DATA AVAILABLE TO THIS CENTER... THE TSUNAMI
   THREAT FROM THIS EARTHQUAKE HAS NOW MOSTLY PASSED. ANY
   REMAINING THREAT SHOULD BE EVALUATED BY LOCAL AUTHORITIES IN
   IMPACTED AREAS.


TSUNAMI THREAT FORECAST...UPDATED
---------------------------------

 * THERE IS NO LONGER A TSUNAMI THREAT FROM THIS EARTHQUAKE.


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

 * REMAIN OBSERVANT AND EXERCISE NORMAL CAUTION NEAR THE SEA.
   OTHERWISE... NO ACTION IS REQUIRED.


POTENTIAL IMPACTS
-----------------

 * MINOR SEA LEVEL FLUCTUATIONS MAY OCCUR IN COASTAL AREAS NEAR
   THE EARTHQUAKE OVER THE NEXT FEW HOURS.... AND CONTINUING FOR
   UP TO SEVERAL HOURS.


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

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

 * BKMG REPORTS A SMALL 9 CM TSUNAMI WAS OBSERVED AT JAILOLO
   INDONESIA.

 * AUTHORITATIVE INFORMATION ABOUT THE EARTHQUAKE FROM THE U.S.
   GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CAN BE FOUND ON THE INTERNET AT
   EARTHQUAKE.USGS.GOV/EARTHQUAKES -ALL LOWER CASE-.

 * FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THIS EVENT MAY BE FOUND AT
   PTWC.WEATHER.GOV AND AT WWW.TSUNAMI.GOV.

 * COASTAL REGIONS OF HAWAII... AMERICAN SAMOA... GUAM... AND
   CNMI SHOULD REFER TO PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER MESSAGES
   SPECIFICALLY FOR THOSE PLACES THAT CAN BE FOUND AT
   PTWC.WEATHER.GOV.

 * COASTAL REGIONS OF CALIFORNIA... OREGON... WASHINGTON...
   BRITISH COLUMBIA AND ALASKA SHOULD ONLY REFER TO U.S. NATIONAL
   TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER MESSAGES THAT CAN BE FOUND AT
   NTWC.ARH.NOAA.GOV.

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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