Thursday, February 7, 2013

Powerful Earthquake Strikes the South Pacific


On Wednesday, an 8.0 magnitude earthquake exploded off the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific. IT triggered a tsunami that killed five people.  When the wave, approximately 1 meter high, hi the Santa Cruz Islands, four elderly people and one child died. The waves caused destruction and disruption at a local airport and its nearby villages.  The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center at first issued a tsunami warning for several countries in the region but later canceled it after reassessing the relevant data. The location of the center of the quake was near the Santa Cruz Islands. The quake, at first, was measured to be 3.6 miles deep but later was then revised to be a depth of 17.8 miles.

Precautionary measures have been taken in the region. The New Zealand Ministry of Civil Defense and Emergency Management warned citizens to stay of the water and to also stay away from the shore. Japanese officials have also reported that a small change in the sea level could affect the country’s eastern coastline. The New Caledonia Hugh Commission in the capital of Noumea ordered for an evacuation of the coastal residents on the eastern coast of New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands.

(WC 200)  http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/05/world/asia/solomon-islands-quake/index.html?hpt=wo_c2

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