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On Sunday morning, 10-15-06, a powerful earthquake shook West Hawaii. It started as a rumbling sound and then very quickly, the whole house started shaking. A glass vase with flowers broke and Sarah's TV fell face first off it's stand. About 6 inches of water in the pool shook out. It was over in about 45 seconds and there was a series of aftershocks.
I knew that earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis and hurricanes happen in Hawaii and was looking forward to experiencing an earthquake for the first time. It was more intense than what I was expecting but nothing when compared to the level 5 tornado that destroyed our home (and entire neighborhoods) back in Cincinnati on April 3, 1974.
Below is an article from the local paper...
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| Cliffs collapse at Kealakekua Bay during a magnitude 6.6 earthquake Sunday morning that was centered about six miles southwest of Puako. - Richard Harrison | Special To West Hawaii Today | |
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RATTLED!
Magnitude-6.6 earthquake jolts Big Island Sunday
Big Island residents were frightened out of bed Sunday morning by a powerful 6.6-magnitude earthquake that damaged residences, triggered landslides, knocked out electricity and likely caused millions of dollars in damage.
The 7:07 a.m. jolt, centered about six miles southwest of Puako, did not spur a Pacific-wide tsunami, but shook items off of the shelves of homes and businesses, crumbled numerous rock walls and prompted authorities to evacuate Kona Community Hospital.
Officials at the U.S. Geological Survey reported the initial shock was followed by a strong aftershock, which some sources called a separate earthquake, at 7:14 a.m. with a magnitude of 5.8, which took place 12 miles southwest of Hawi. Dozens of aftershocks followed, including a 3.6 at 7:29 a.m., another 3.8 at 8:20 a.m. and a 4.2 at 10:35 a.m.
Sunday's earthquake was the largest on the Big Island since the 6.6-magnitude shaker in the Volcano area on Nov. 16, 1983. It was also the first magnitude-6 temblor since June 25, 1989, when a 6.1 took place at Kilauea Volcano off the Puna Coast.
"This one is a head-scratcher," said Jim Kauahikaua, geophysicist and scientist-in-charge at Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. "It is very unusual for an earthquake of that size in that location."
Kauahikaua said he suspects the event was a crustal adjustment, since the earthquakes were so deep, the first one about 24 miles below sea level and the second about 13 miles below the surface.
"We've had nothing greater than a 4.8 in that area since we began measuring in 1960," said Kauahikaua. "We're not clear at all about what happened."
Kauahikaua did not think the temblors were related to the submerged volcano Mahukona, which is located far off the Kohala Coast, or to an underwater landslide.
"The fact that we don't have any evidence of a tsunami generated signifies that it wasn't a landslide," he noted.
The quakes triggered dozens of aftershocks 2.0 or larger, and Kauahikaua said he would not be surprised if they continued for quite a while.
"It was a very big earthquake," he said. "We're hoping that none of them are very big."
The quake in 1983 caused heavy property damage on the Big Island and collapsed trails into a volcano in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
A 6.1-magnitude quake also hit in 1989, according to the Earthquake Information Center. The largest recorded Hawaiian earthquake struck the Ka'u District on Hawaii Island in 1868, causing 77 deaths. Its magnitude was estimated at 7.9.
A 9.5-magnitude earthquake, the largest in the world, struck Chile on May 22, 1960, and a tsunami traveled to Hawaii, where 61 people died. |
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