Earthquakes

[Shammu]

Quake hits Iranian oil-rich area, no damage reports
Tue Nov 20, 2007 1:40pm IST
 
TEHRAN (Reuters) - A 5.1 magnitude earthquake jolted Iran's oil-rich southwest on Tuesday, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties, official Iranian media said.

The quake occurred at 0520 GMT near the town of Ghaleh-tal in an eastern part of Khuzestan province and the tremor was felt in the provincial capital Ahvaz and elsewhere, IRNA news agency said.

Khuzestan is the heartland of the oil industry in the world's number four producer but most oil fields lie further west and south from the reported epicentre of the quake.

"We have not received any reports of possible casualties or damage yet," IRNA quoted local official Shapour Rostami as saying.

Natural disaster experts say oil-producing Iran is one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world because it is criss-crossed by several major faultlines.

Quake hits Iranian oil-rich area, no damage reports

[Shammu]

Minor earthquake felt across Israel, none hurt
JPost.com Staff , THE JERUSALEM POST    Nov. 20, 2007

A minor earthquake was felt throughout Israel at approximately 11:20 a.m. Tuesday.

The quake, which lasted only a few seconds, was measured at 4.2 on the Richter scale and its epicenter was in the Dead Sea, Israel Radio reported. There were no reports of injured or damage.

"The whole house shook. Some things fell from their place," a caller told Israel Radio.

A Magen David Adom ambulance driver who was in the northern Dead Sea area when the earthquake took place said that the quake had not been felt too strongly, even near its epicenter. "I was on shift with the ambulance. At first there was a small quake and then a larger quake came. It wasn't very strong but it was enough to be a bit frightening," he said.

The last substantial earthquake in the area occurred in February 2004, and was measured at 5.2 on the Richter scale.

Tel Aviv University scientists recently said that a major earthquake in the region was long overdue.

The university's Dr. Shmuel Marco noted that the Syrian-African Rift is a high-risk location for earthquakes.

"If we examine the records of the Kinneret and the Dead Sea over the last two millennia, there were relatively many strong earthquakes during the first 1,000 years and few during the next 1,000," he said.

"We have not had any strong ones since 1033, which means another one is long due. It's impossible to know when it will strike, just like you can't predict road accidents."

Minor earthquake felt across Israel, none hurt

[Shammu]

Strong quake hits Papua New Guinea

Thu Nov 22, 9:40 AM ET

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea - A strong earthquake rocked eastern Papua New Guinea on Thursday, causing some damage and plunging parts of the coastal city of Lae into darkness, officials and witnesses said.

No casualties were reported in the South Pacific archipelago nation.

The quake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.7 hit just before 6:48 p.m. local time and was centered about 250 miles north of the capital Port Moresby and 60 miles north of Lae, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said no tsunami warning was issued.

Larry George, a manager of the City Mission charity hostel in Lae, said the quake was the biggest many long-term residents had felt there.

"It emptied our shelves and smashed glasses," George said, adding that a water tank had burst and the power was cut in parts of the city.

Lae International Hotel staff member Nora Gorogo said television sets rattled off shelves and were smashed in several hotel rooms.

She said she was not aware of any major damage or casualties.

The emergency services in Lae and Port Moresby's disaster management center could not be immediately contacted for comment.

Parts of Papua New Guinea are frequently shaken by earthquakes.

Strong quake hits Papua New Guinea

[Shammu]

Earthquake jolts western Indonesia

Thu Nov 22, 9:34 PM ET

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia - A strong earthquake jolted parts of western Indonesia on Friday, sending panicked residents fleeing from their homes, officials and witnesses said.
ADVERTISEMENT

There were no reports of damage as a result of the 6.1 magnitude quake that struck off the coast of Sumatra island, said Syahnan, the head of the local geophysics agency. Like many Indonesians, he goes by a single name.

The quake was felt strongly for around 30 seconds by people in the provincial capital, Banda Aceh, where some ran from their homes, witnesses there said.

In December 2004, a massive earthquake struck off Sumatra island and triggered a tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people in a dozen countries, including 160,000 people in Aceh.

Indonesia, the world's largest archipelago, is prone to seismic upheavals due to its location on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanos and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

Earthquake jolts western Indonesia

[Soldier4Christ]

Strong quakes shake Indonesia 
USGS: 6.1-magnitude temblor followed hours later by 6.7 strength rattler

Strong earthquakes shook western and eastern Indonesia on Sunday, sending panicked residents fleeing from their homes. One of the tremors shook telephone and electricity poles and forced the evacuation of a hospital.

A 6.1-magnitude quake struck waters off Sumatra island early Sunday and was followed 13 hours later by a 6.7 temblor just off Sumbawa island, to the west, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

There were no immediate reports of injuries.
Story continues below ↓advertisement

The morning tremor rattled residents in Bengkulu, a coastal town 110 miles from its center. The region has been hit by a series of powerful earthquakes in recent months, putting many on edge.

"It was very strong ... even utility poles were shaking," said Dina Ramadani, adding that people started screaming after one pole toppled over and crashed into a street. Others ran to high ground, fearing a tsunami that never came.

Worried about aftershocks, officials at one hospital in Jambi province told all patients to temporarily leave the building, treating some outside.

Violent shaking
The late-night quake struck 27 miles from the town of Raba at a depth of 18 miles, the USGS reported. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was a "very small possibility of a local tsunami," but seismically triggered waves did not materialize.

Local officials also said there were no reports of damage.

"Everyone panicked, they were running from their houses, some to the hills," said Agung Prasetyo, a police officer, adding that the ground shook violently for around 30 seconds. Electricity was temporarily cut in some places.

Indonesia, the world's largest archipelago, is prone to seismic upheavals due to its location on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanos and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

In December 2004, a massive earthquake struck off Sumatra and triggered a tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people in a dozen countries, including 160,000 people in Indonesia's westernmost province of Aceh.

[Shammu]

Series of quakes hit off Indonesian islands
Sun Nov 25, 2007 4:06pm EST

JAKARTA (Reuters) - An earthquake measuring 6.8 hit off the coast of Indonesia's Sumbawa island, the country's meteorological agency said on Monday -- the second such tremor in the area with hours.

The quake hit 48 km northwest of Raba in Sumbawa, at a depth of 45 km, the agency said in a text message, and issued a tsunami warning.

Late on Sunday evening, an earthquake measuring 6.7 hit in the same area.

An earthquake measuring 6.0 also hit off the coast of Sumatra island, the meteorological agency said on Monday.

The quake hit 107 km (66 miles) southwest of Mukomuko in Bengkulu, Sumatra at a depth of 20 km (12 miles), the agency said in a text message. There was no tsunami warning.

On Sunday a quake with a 6.2 magnitude hit the same area.

More than 20 people were killed when an 8.4 magnitude earthquake hit the Bengkulu area on September 12, damaging or destroying thousands of homes.

Indonesia, which is situated in a belt of intense seismic activity known as the "Pacific Ring of Fire", was hit by a huge earthquake in December 2004, triggering a devastating tsunami in the Indian Ocean, which killed more than 230,000 people in the region, including 170,000 Indonesians.

Series of quakes hit off Indonesian islands

[Shammu]

Moderate quakes hit western and southern Mexico
Mon Nov 26, 2007 5:55pm EST

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A moderate earthquake hit Michoacan state in western Mexico on Monday but there were no immediate reports of serious damage or casualties.

A magnitude 5.8 quake hit 55 miles south-southwest of the state capital Morelia, with its epicenter 49.8 miles

underground, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

"There is no damage for the moment," said civil protection official Hugo Magana in Morelia. "They are going around checking the cities."

Earlier on Monday, a 5.6-magnitude quake shook the southern Mexican state of Chiapas.

Moderate quakes hit western and southern Mexico

[Shammu]

Moderate quake shakes the Philippines

Tue Nov 27, 12:32 AM ET

MANILA, Philippines - A moderate earthquake shook the Philippines' main island of Luzon on Tuesday. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage.

Buildings across Manila shook for several seconds. Panicked residents ran out into the streets, including some staffers at the Malacanang presidential palace and workers in the capital's Makati financial district.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake had a magnitude of 6.0 — upgraded from a preliminary estimate of 5.8 — with an epicenter 120 miles north-northwest of Manila and at a depth of 38.8 miles.

The Philippine archipelago lies along the Pacific Ocean's "Ring of Fire," where volcanic activity and earthquakes are common.

Moderate quake shakes the Philippines

[Shammu]

6.6 magnitude quake hits near Solomon Islands
Tue Nov 27, 2007 9:06am EST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A 6.6 magnitude earthquake struck near the Solomon Islands on Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.

The quake, which hit at 6:50 a.m. EST, was centered 43 miles (69 km) southeast of Kira Kira, Solomon Islands, at a depth of 25.8 miles, the USGS said.

There was no significant threat of a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.

6.6 magnitude quake hits near Solomon Islands

[Shammu]

Holy Land overdue for a major earthquake
TEL AVIV — Based on 400-year historical cycles a the pattern of recent tremors, the Middle East should be expecting a major earthquake in the near future, a geologist said.

A leading Israeli geologist has assessed that the Middle East, particularly, the Levant, was ripe for a major earthquake. The geologist based his forecast on seismological data as well as historical patterns.

"All of us in the region should be worried," Shmuel Marco, a geologist at Tel Aviv University, said.

 Seismologists have often warned of the prospect of a major earthquake in the Middle East. The Levant has undergone a series of serious tremors on the magnitude of five on the Richter Scale, but without causing significant damage.

On Nov. 20, an earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter Scale shook Israel and Jordan. The earthquake, whose epicenter was in the area of the Dead Sea, did not cause major damage.

Marcos a member of Tel Aviv University's Department of Geophysics and Planetary Sciences, has sought to predict the next major earthquake in the Levant through historical examination. The geologist has examined ancient records from the Vatican and other religious sources in his research.

The major earthquakes in the Levant took place along the Jordan Valley. Earthquakes were reported in 31 BCE, 363 CE, 749 CE and 1033 CE.

"So roughly, we are talking about an interval of every 400 years," Marcos said. "If we follow the patterns of nature, a major quake should be expected any time because almost a whole millennium has passed since the last strong earthquake of 1033."

Based on history, Marcos predicts a major earthquake that would affect Israel, Jordan, Palestinian Authority and Syria. He said the sites important to Christianity, Islam and Judaism could be particularly vulnerable.

"I am looking for patterns and I can say that based on ancient records, the pattern in Israel around the Dead Sea region is the most disturbing to us," Marcos said. "When it strikes and it will this quake will affect Amman, Jordan as well as Ramallah, Bethlehem, and Jerusalem. Earthquakes don't care about religion or political boundaries."

Holy Land overdue for a major earthquake

[Shammu]

Based on 400-year historical cycles a the pattern of recent tremors, the Middle East should be expecting a major earthquake in the near future, a geologist said.

Revelation 6:12 When He [the Lamb] broke open the sixth seal, I looked, and there was a great earthquake; and the sun grew black as sackcloth of hair, [the full disc of] the moon became like blood.

Revelation 8:5 So the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and cast it upon the earth. Then there followed peals of thunder and loud rumblings and blasts and noises, and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.

Zechariah 14:4 And His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives, which lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from the east to the west by a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north and half of it toward the south.

Signs, signs, every where are signs, so make sure you watch.................

Mark 13:35 Therefore watch (give strict attention, be cautious and alert), for you do not know when the Master of the house is coming--in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrowing, or in the morning--

[Soldier4Christ]

Quake rocks eastern Caribbean 
Minor injuries reported on island of Martinique

A powerful earthquake rocked the eastern Caribbean Thursday, sending office workers and shoppers on several islands fleeing into the streets. Minor injuries were reported on the island of Martinique.

The 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck at 2 p.m. EST and was centered 26 miles southeast of Roseau, capital of Dominica, where the shaking lasted for about 20 seconds. The temblor was felt hundreds of miles away in Puerto Rico to the west, and Venezuela and Suriname to the south.

In the neighboring island of Martinique, a government official said police and firefighters were responding to hundreds of calls for help. He said some people sustained minor injuries, but no major casualties have been reported. The official declined to give his name in accordance with government policy.

The earthquake collapsed the roofs of a bank and a store in the capital of Martinique, Fort-de-France. Ambulances were called in.

"My house shook so hard I thought it was going to fall," said a caller to Radio Martinique who identified herself only as Fannie. "The door, the windows, everything shook."

The quake struck at a depth of 90 miles, according to the U.S. Geological Survey Web site.

"I wouldn't expect major damage because the quake has some depth," said Don Blakeman, a geophysicist at the National Earthquake Information Center in Golden, Colo.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said the quake was too deep to generate a destructive tsunami.

In Trinidad, the shaking sent workers streaming out of office towers into the streets of the capital, Port-of-Spain.

Thousands more ran outside in St. Maarten. Flight's at Princess Juliana International Airport were briefly suspended. In Guyana, lawmakers evacuated the South American country's parliament building.

The earthquake did not disrupt production at Trinidad's state-owned oil refinery, Petrotrin, which produces 160,000 barrels of refined gasoline, diesel and oil daily for domestic use and export to countries including the United States.

"We have not had any reports about breakdowns from our exploration and production fields," spokesman Arnold Corneal said. "We are still doing checks."

In St. Lucia, Julian Dubois, deputy director of the national emergency management organization, said the quake caused some panic and broke water lines but did not appear to cause severe damage. In the capital, Castries, people spoke of buildings swaying but not toppling. A glass door of one company was shattered.

St. Lucia resident Annie Ellis said the quake was the strongest she has experienced. "In all my years, I have never felt any earthquake so powerful," said the 100-year-old Ellis. "And it lasted such a long time."

In Antigua, islanders said the shaking lasted about 30 seconds.

"I haven't felt one like that in a while," said Jessie Kentish, a resident of the capital, St. John's. "It was a long time."

The temblor triggered a series of false quake alarms in California, with computers picking up energy coming out of the Caribbean and erroneously treating it as local seismic activity. The fake quakes began registering nine minutes after the Caribbean quake, USGS scientists said.

In September, a similar incident occurred when a massive earthquake struck off the Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean and triggered six false reports of quakes in California.

[Shammu]

Indonesia rattled by strong quake

Fri Nov 30, 10:16 PM ET

JAKARTA, Indonesia - A powerful earthquake struck western Indonesia on Saturday, geological agencies said, but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

The temblor had a preliminary magnitude of 6.2 and was centered 65 miles from Sibolga, a city on Sumatra island, the U.S. Geological Survey.

The Indonesian geological agency did not issue a tsunami warning.

Indonesia, the world's largest archipelago, is prone to seismic upheavals due to its location on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanos and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

In December 2004, a massive earthquake struck off Sumatra and triggered a tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people in a dozen countries, including 160,000 people in Indonesia's westernmost province of Aceh.

Indonesia rattled by strong quake

[Shammu]

Strong quake hits Indonesia's Java island
2 Dec 2007, 0710 hrs IST,REUTERS

JAKARTA: An earthquake measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale shook the western part of Indonesia's Java island on Sunday, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties, the meteorology agency said.

The undersea quake had a depth of 32 km (20 miles) and was centred 78 km southeast of Ujungkulon in the western tip of Java. An official at the meteorology agency said the quake was felt strongly in the Pelabuhan Ratu resort area but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

Indonesia sits on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire prone to seismic upheavals.

Strong quake hits Indonesia's Java island

[Shammu]

Earthquake shakes Israel, Palestinian territories
2 Dec 2007, 1556 hrs IST,AP

JERUSALEM: The fourth earthquake in two weeks shook parts of Israel and the Palestinian territories on Sunday, causing no casualties or damage.

The tremor had a magnitude of 4.0, according to a statement from Israel's Geophysical Institute. Its epicenter was north of the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth, on the active Syrian-African rift fault line where earthquakes are common.

On average, major earthquakes hit Israel once a century. But the recent tremors do not indicate that a large-scale quake is on the way, said Dr Uri Frieslander, director of the Geophysical Institute.

"What we're seeing are typical movements along the Dead Sea valley," Frieslander told Israel Radio.

"These quakes...don't foreshadow anything or indicate that something is about to happen," he said.

None of the recent quakes have caused injuries or damage. But in the past, earthquakes have caused serious damage to Safed, Jerusalem and the West Bank city of Nablus, and have damaged holy sites, including the Al-Aqsa mosque, Islam's third-holiest site, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, sacred to many Christians as the site of Jesus' crucifixion and burial.

The last major earthquake to strike the area was in 1927. It had a magnitude of more than 6 and killed 500 people. Israeli experts say that because of population growth and poor construction standards in older buildings, an earthquake of the same magnitude today would kill more than 18,000 people.

Earthquake shakes Israel, Palestinian territories