Categorized | Earthquake, News

Strong 6.9M quake near Vanuatu, no tsunami threat to Hawaii Saturday (April 2)

Magnitude
6.9

Time
2016-04-03 08:23:53 (UTC)
2016-04-02 22:23:53 HST

Nearby Cities
81km (50mi) NNW of Port-Olry, Vanuatu
135km (84mi) NNW of Luganville, Vanuatu
407km (253mi) NNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu
728km (452mi) N of We, New Caledonia
862km (536mi) N of Paita, New Caledonia

Hawaii Area

TSUNAMI INFORMATION STATEMENT NUMBER   1
NWS PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER EWA BEACH HI
1034 PM HST SAT APR 02 2016

TO - EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT IN THE STATE OF HAWAII

SUBJECT - TSUNAMI INFORMATION STATEMENT

THIS STATEMENT IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY. NO ACTION REQUIRED.

AN EARTHQUAKE HAS OCCURRED WITH THESE PRELIMINARY PARAMETERS

   ORIGIN TIME - 1024 PM HST 02 APR 2016
   COORDINATES - 14.2 SOUTH  166.9 EAST
   LOCATION    - VANUATU
   MAGNITUDE   - 7.2  MOMENT

EVALUATION

 BASED ON ALL AVAILABLE DATA A DESTRUCTIVE PACIFIC-WIDE TSUNAMI IS
 NOT EXPECTED AND THERE IS NO TSUNAMI THREAT TO HAWAII. REPEAT. A
 DESTRUCTIVE PACIFIC-WIDE TSUNAMI IS NOT EXPECTED AND THERE IS NO
 TSUNAMI THREAT TO HAWAII.

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

 

Pacific area near epicenter

TSUNAMI MESSAGE NUMBER 2
NWS PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER EWA BEACH HI
0912 UTC SUN APR 3 2016

...PTWC FINAL TSUNAMI THREAT MESSAGE...

NOTE REDUCED MAGNITUDE

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

  * MAGNITUDE      6.9
  * ORIGIN TIME    0824 UTC APR 3 2016
  * COORDINATES    14.2 SOUTH  166.8 EAST
  * DEPTH          33 KM / 20 MILES
  * LOCATION       VANUATU


EVALUATION
----------

  * AN EARTHQUAKE WITH A PRELIMINARY MAGNITUDE OF 6.9 OCCURRED IN
    THE VANUATU ISLANDS AT 0824 UTC ON SUNDAY APRIL 3 2016.

  * 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
-----------------------

  * THE TSUNAMI THREAT HAS NOW LARGELY PASSED.


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

  * GOVERNMENT AGENCIES RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY IMPACTED COASTAL
    AREAS SHOULD MONITOR CONDITIONS AT THE COAST TO DETERMINE IF
    AND WHEN IT IS SAFE TO RESUME NORMAL ACTIVITIES.

  * PERSONS LOCATED NEAR IMPACTED COASTAL AREAS SHOULD STAY ALERT
    FOR INFORMATION AND FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS FROM LOCAL
    AUTHORITIES.

  * REMAIN OBSERVANT AND EXERCISE NORMAL CAUTION NEAR THE SEA.


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

  * MINOR SEA LEVEL FLUCTUATIONS OF UP TO 0.3 METERS ABOVE AND
    BELOW THE NORMAL TIDE MAY CONTINUE OVER THE NEXT FEW 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.

  * 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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