M6.7 Quake Strikes South of Java

Strong Earthquake Measuring 6.7Mw Strikes South of Java, ENE of Christmas Island

The quake struck at an estimated depth of 24 km about 241 km (149 miles) ENE of Christmas Island, USGS/EHP said.

Earthquake Location Map

Source: USGS/EHP. Map enhanced by FIRE-EARTH

Earthquake Details

• Magnitude: 6.7
• Date-Time: Sunday, April 03, 2011 at 20:06:42 UTC
• Location: 9.786°S, 107.749°E
• Depth: 24 km (14.9 miles)
• Region: SOUTH OF JAVA, INDONESIA
• Distances:
  • 241 km (149 miles) ENE of Christmas Island
  • 277 km (172 miles) S of Tasikmalaya, Java, Indonesia
  • 318 km (197 miles) S of Bandung, Java, Indonesia
  • 412 km (256 miles) SSE of JAKARTA, Java, Indonesia
• Location Uncertainty:
  • horizontal +/- 12 km (7.5 miles)
  • depth +/- 7 km (4.3 miles)
• Source: USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)

Tsunami Evaluation

A DESTRUCTIVE WIDESPREAD TSUNAMI THREAT DOES NOT EXIST BASED ON HISTORICAL EARTHQUAKE AND TSUNAMI DATA. HOWEVER, THERE IS A VERY SMALL POSSIBILITY OF A LOCAL TSUNAMI THAT COULD AFFECT COASTS LOCATED USUALLY NO MORE THAN A HUNDRED KILOMETERS FROM THE EARTHQUAKE EPICENTER. AUTHORITIES IN THE REGION NEAR THE EPICENTER SHOULD BE MADE AWARE OF THIS POSSIBILITY:  PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER

Damage Report

There was no report of damage or casualties as of posting; however, news agencies quoted a spokesman for Indonesia’s earthquake agency as saying: “In Cilacap people were panicking—most of them are evacuating to higher ground.”

The agency reported the quake as a 7.1 magnitude striking at a depth of 10km with the epicenter located at about 300km from Cilacap, south coast of Java island, Indonesia.

Other Recent Significant Quakes:

• FIJI Region: 6.4Mw; 17.649°S, 178.578°W; depth of 552km;   Sunday, April 03, 2011 at 14:07:09 UTC
• Tarapaca Chile: 5.9Mw; 9.555°S, 69.072°W; depth of 83km;  Saturday, April 02, 2011 at 10:59:37 UTC
• Crete, Greece: 5.9Mw; 35.729°N, 26.455°E; depth of 78km; Friday, April 01, 2011 at 13:29:12 UTC
• E Honshu, Japan: 5.9Mw; 39.353°N, 141.982°E; depth of 38km;  Friday, April 01, 2011 at 11:57:54 UTC

Related Links

• FEWW Volcano Links
• Volcanoes
• FEWW Earthquake Links

Merapi’s latest eruption the deadliest so far

The latest eruption of Mount Merapi volcano claims about 70 lives; hundreds more injured

Mt Merapi volcano’s latest salvo of eruptions began on October 26, 2010.  On Thursday, it blasted hot ash and poisonous volcanic fumes into the air, killing about 70 more people, reports say.

The blast has burned villages up to 15km (9 miles) from the summit crater.

Indonesian President Bambang  declared the eruption a national disaster on Friday. Up to 100,000 people have now abandoned dozens of villages on the slopes of the volcano. The death toll from the continual 10-day eruption has now climbed to at least 115.

Mt Merapi’s Eruption: Satellite Image

Download large image (2 MB, JPEG) — Image acquired November 1, 2010 – Posted on November 5, 2010.

ASTER on NASA’s Terra satellite captured the thermal signature of hot ash and rock and a glowing lava dome on October 30.  The thermal data is overlaid on a three-dimensional map of the volcano to show the approximate location of the flow. The three-dimensional data is from a global topographic model created using ASTER stereo observations.

Merapi shows no signs of slowing. After several days of eruptive episodes, the volcano began an eruption on November 3 that was five times more intense than on October 26 and lasted more than 24 hours. It is the most violent eruption at the volcano since the 1870s, said local geologists. (Source: NASA-EO).

Mt Sinabung, Krakatau and Merapi Volcanoes Location Map. Source of the original map: USGS. Map enhanced by Fire-Earth. Click image to enlarge.

Videos and more images are available at: HVO

Related Links:

• A New Era of Intense Volcanic Unrest May Have Begun
• World’s Dormant Volcanoes Firing
• VolcanoWatch Weekly [16 September 2009]
• Sinabung Getting More Serious
• Sinabung Erupts Again

FEWW Volcanic Activity Forecast

• Sumatra’s Mt Kerinci Erupts
• Volcano Watch Weekly: 23 April 2009
• Weekly Volcano Watch: 16 April 2009
• Weekly Volcano Watch: 2 April 2009
• Tonga’s Metis Shoal may be erupting
• Rumble III Volcano “blew its top!”

Other Related Links:

• FEWW Volcano Links
• Volcanoes
• FEWW Earthquake Links

• Earth’s Climate: A Solar Powered System

Latest Entries on Mt Merapi

• Mt Merapi Erupts Again, 70,000 Evacuated
• Mount Merapi Erupts Repeatedly
• Tsunami Claims 200 After 7.7Mw Quake Strikes Indonesia

• 2010 disasters
• 2011 SIX TIMES MORE DISASTROUS THAN 2010
• Collapse Diary
• 2010 Disaster Calendar

Mount Merapi Erupts Repeatedly

Mount Merapi erupted at least six times Friday, spewing ash and lava

Indonesia’s Mount Merapi volcano erupted repeatedly on Friday, spewing ash and lava, reports say.

The plume reportedly rose to a height of  about 1,500 meters (~ 5,000 feet).

Mount Merapi volcano spewed lava for the first time in its latest round of activity which began Tuesday.  Photo: AFP/ Getty Images. Image may be subject to copyright.

Mount Merapi, located north of the Yogyakarta, on the densely populated island of Java, is one of Indonesia’s most active volcanoes.

Mount Merapi volcano eruption in 2006. Photo: AP. Image may be subject to copyright.

Mount Merapi rumbled for many hours before spewing smoke on Tuesday. Photo shows volcano from Balerante, Central Java, Indonesia. Merapi last erupted in 2006. About 1,400 people have been killed as a result of 3 previous eruptions since 1930. Image Credit: AP. Caption: Fire-Earth.

Merapi, one of Indonesia’s most active volcanoes, lies in one of the world’s most densely populated areas and dominates the landscape immediately north of the major city of Yogyakarta. Merapi is the youngest and southernmost of a volcanic chain extending NNW to Ungaran volcano. Growth of Old Merapi volcano beginning during the Pleistocene ended with major edifice collapse perhaps about 2000 years ago, leaving a large arcuate scarp cutting the eroded older Batulawang volcano. Subsequently growth of the steep-sided Young Merapi edifice, its upper part unvegetated due to frequent eruptive activity, began SW of the earlier collapse scarp. Pyroclastic flows and lahars accompanying growth and collapse of the steep-sided active summit lava dome have devastated cultivated lands on the volcano’s western-to-southern flanks and caused many fatalities during historical time. The volcano is the object of extensive monitoring efforts by the Merapi Volcano Observatory. Photo by Yustinus Sulistiyo, 1994 (Volcanological Survey of Indonesia); caption: GVP

Latest Entries:

• Tsunami Claims 200 After 7.7Mw Quake Strikes Indonesia

Mt Sinabung Links:

• Sinabung Erupts Again
• Mount Sinabung Erupts

Related Links:

• FEWW Volcano Links
• Volcanoes
• FEWW Earthquake Links
• Earth’s Climate: A Solar Powered System

FEWW Volcanic Activity Forecast

• Sumatra’s Mt Kerinci Erupts
• Volcano Watch Weekly: 23 April 2009
• Weekly Volcano Watch: 16 April 2009
• Weekly Volcano Watch: 2 April 2009

Other Recommended Links

• Nature Has the Right of Way
• 2010 Disaster Calendar [AUGUST]

• Collapse of Pakistan May Have Started
• Collapse Diary
• 2010 Disaster Calendar

• The First Wave of World’s Collapsing Cities
• Index of Human Impact on Nature (HIoN) March 2008
• Earth’s Human Induced Antiphase Nears Completion

Tsunami Claims 200 After 7.7Mw Quake Strikes Indonesia

At Least 200 Dead or Missing After Tsunami Created by Powerful Quake Destroys Villages Off Western Indonesia

At least 10 villages were obliterated by a 3-m high tsunami created after a 7.7Mw quake struck off the Mentawai islands, Sumatra, western Indonesia.

A huge white wave which was created by the quake washed away  just about everything in sight, eyewitnesses said.

At least 25 people are confirmed dead with about 170 others [local officials say at least 380 people] reported  as missing.

Earthquake Location Map. Source: USGS-EHP. Enhanced by Fire-Earth.

Mount Merapi Erupts

Meanwhile  the volatile Mount Merapi volcano began erupting Tuesday after rumbling for about 24 hours.

State vulcanologists believe that the pressure buildup withing Merapi could lead to powerful explosions.

About 40,000 people living on the slopes of the volcano have been evacuated.

Mount Merapi rumbled for many hours before spewing smoke on Tuesday. Photo shows volcano from Balerante, Central Java, Indonesia. Merapi last erupted in 2006. About 1,400 people have been killed as a result of 3 previous eruptions since 1930. Image Credit: AP. Caption: Fire-Earth.

New Zealand Earthquake Forecast:

Fire-Earth Moderators believe a large earthquake measuring about 8.8Mw could strike New Zealand Region.

Earthquake Details

• Magnitude: 7.7
• Date-Time:
  • Monday, October 25, 2010 at 14:42:22 UTC
  • Monday, October 25, 2010 at 09:42:22 PM at epicenter

• Location: 3.484°S, 100.114°E
• Depth: 20.6 km
• Region: KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION, INDONESIA
• Distances:
  • 240 km (150 miles) W of Bengkulu, Sumatra, Indonesia
  • 280 km (175 miles) S of Padang, Sumatra, Indonesia
  • 305 km (190 miles) W of Lubuklinggau, Sumatra, Indonesia
  • 795 km (500 miles) WNW of JAKARTA, Java, Indonesia

• Location Uncertainty:
  • horizontal +/- 5.3 km (3.3 miles)
  • depth +/- 3.4 km (2.1 miles)

• Source: USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)
• Event ID: usa00043nx

Related Links:

• 3 Waves of Significant Quakes Strike Our Planet
• Global Earthquakes Tempi Rising [Posted on July 20, 2010]

• FEWW Volcano Links
• Volcanoes
• FEWW Earthquake Links

Strong Earthquake Strikes Southern Sumatra

M6.5 Earthquake Strikes Southwest of Sumatra, Indonesia

The strong shock was centered at 4.063°S, 101.085°E and occurred at an estimated depth of about 27km on Wednesday, May 05, 2010 at 16:29:03 UTC, USGS/EHP said.

The earthquake epicenter was located about 50km (31 miles) NNW of a large 8.5Mw quake which struck on September 12, 2007 at a depth of about 34km (21miles) killing at least 25 people.

Tsunami Status

The Pacific Tsunami Center ruled out the possibility of a destructive widespread tsunami as a result of this quake, but did not rule out “a very small possibility of a local tsunami” that may affect the local coasts within a radius of about 100km from the quake’s epicenter.

Fire-Earth Forecast:

Fire-Earth Forecasts large scale volcanic activity in and around Sumatra Region in 2010 and beyond.

10-degree Map Centered at 5°S,100°E

Earthquake Location Map. Source: USGS/EHP. Map enhanced by Fire-Earth.

Earthquake Details

• Magnitude: 6.5
• Date-Time:
  • Wednesday, May 05, 2010 at 16:29:03 UTC
  • Wednesday, May 05, 2010 at 11:29:03 PM at epicenter
• Location: 4.063°S, 101.085°E
• Depth: 27 km (16.8 miles)
• Region: SOUTHERN SUMATRA, INDONESIA
• Distances:
  • 135 km (85 miles) WSW of Bengkulu, Sumatra, Indonesia
  • 215 km (135 miles) WSW of Lubuklinggau, Sumatra, Indonesia
  • 355 km (220 miles) SSE of Padang, Sumatra, Indonesia
  • 680 km (420 miles) WNW of JAKARTA, Java, Indonesia
• Location Uncertainty:  horizontal +/- 5.3 km (3.3 miles)
• Source:  USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)
• Event ID: us2010vxbk

Related Links:

• FEWW Volcano Links
• Volcanoes
• FEWW Earthquake Links

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Strong Quake Strikes KEPULAUAN OBI, INDONESIA

Magnitude 6.4 Earthquake Strikes KEPULAUAN OBI, INDONESIA

Strong earthquake measuring 6.4Mw Struck about 205 north of Ambon, Moluccas, Indonesia, just south of the equator.

The earthquake was centered at 128.22°E, 1.85°S  and occurred at a depth of about 41km on Saturday, April 24, 2010 at 07:41:02 UTC.

NO tsunami warning/advisory was issued, and as of posting there was no report of damage or casualties.

Indonesian islands sit atop numerous fault line, which make the region one of the most seismically active areas on the planet. See below for a list of the quake in the region.

GFZ Potsdam – Earthquake Bulletin

• Region: Halmahera, Indonesia
• Time: 2010-04-24 07:41:03.2 UTC
• Magnitude: 6.1 [ Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climate and Geophysics Agency, BMG, recorded the quake as a 6.4Mw]
• Epicenter: 128.22°E 1.85°S
• Depth: 41 km
• Status: manually revised

© Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum – GFZ

Approximate Distances [USGS/EHP]:

• 205 km (125 miles) N of Ambon, Moluccas, Indonesia
• 305 km (190 miles) SSE of Ternate, Moluccas, Indonesia
• 1215 km (750 miles) NNW of DARWIN, Northern Territory, Australia
• 2415 km (1500 miles) E of JAKARTA, Java, Indonesia

Historic Information

• Learning from Earthquakes: Indonesia

Institutions

• Badan Meteorologi dan Geofisika – BMG
• ASEAN Earthquake Information Center
• Volcanological Survey of Indonesia

Maps

• Politcal Map of Indonesia
• Seismic Hazard Map
• Earthquake Density Map
• Seismicity Map of Indonesia

Notable Earthquakes

• Historic Earthquakes in Indonesia

Recent Earthquakes

• Last Earthquake in Indonesia [from the NEIC Earthquake Bulletin]
• BMG Recent Earthquakes

Tectonic Information

• Seismotectonics of the Indonesian Region
• Tectonics of Indonesia
• Geology of Indonesia
• Krakatau Volcano

Related Links:

• Magnitude 4.0 quake hits Utah near gas fields
• FEWW Volcano Links
• Volcanoes
• FEWW Earthquake Links

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Serial No 1,619. Starting April 2010, each entry on this blog has a unique serial number. If any of the numbers are missing, it may mean that the corresponding entry has been blocked by Google/the authorities in your country. Please drop us a line if you detect any anomaly/missing number(s).

Large Quake Could Strike Near Padang, Sumatra

Strong Earthquake Measuring 6.2 Mw Strikes Kepulauan Mentawai Region, Indonesia

An earthquake measuring 6.2 Mw struck Kepulauan Mentawai Region, about 115 km (70 miles) WSW of Padang, Sumatra, Indonesia, at a depth of about 22km. The mainshock was followed by at least one aftershock measuring 5.3Mw.

More than two dozen quakes measuring 5.0Mw or larger, including a 6.9Mw quake that occurred in August 2009, have struck the area since mid August 2009.

Based on the existing information, FEWW EarthModel forecasts a large quake measuring ≥8.0 could strike near Padang, the capital and largest city of West Sumatra, Indonesia.

Padang has a population of about 800,000 people.

Earthquake Details:

Region: Southern Sumatra, Indonesia
Time: 2009-12-23 01:11:59.6 UTC
Magnitude: 6.2 [estimated by FEWW]
Epicenter: 99.47°E 1.43°S   [location estimated by USGS: 1.419°S, 99.448°E]
Depth: 27 km

EQ Location Map. Source: GFZ Potsdam – Earthquake Bulletin. Image may be subject to copyright.

Seismic Hazard Map

Major Tectonic Boundaries: Subduction Zones -purple, Ridges -red and Transform Faults -green. Source: USGS/EHP

Historic Seismicity

Major Tectonic Boundaries: Subduction Zones -purple, Ridges -red and Transform Faults -green. Source: USGS/EHP

Related Links:

• FEWW Volcano Links
• Volcanoes
• FEWW Earthquake Links

Disaster Update: Indonesia Quake

Indonesia Quake, Typhoon Ketsana and Samoa Tsunami

The death toll from the powerful earthquake in southern Sumatra, Indonesia has reached about 200, but is likely to rise sharply.

Students walk out from a collapsed building after an earthquake hit Padang, on Indonesia’s Sumatra island September 30, 2009. REUTERS/Muhammad Fitrah/Singgalang Newspaper

Let’s be clear about this. The quake that hit Padang, Sumatra, was much stronger than reported. It was at least a magnitude 7.8, about 3 times stronger than reported.

Some high-rise buildings in Singapore, about 450 km northeast of the epicenter felt the tremors, which also shook some office buildings in  Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Indonesia’s Vice President Jusuf Kalla confirmed late last night that in Jakarta, that the death toll would rise because there was substantial damage in the area with many buildings  collapsed.

Based on the information received and experience from the previous events, FEWW Moderators believe that the death toll might be as high as 2 – 3,000, with many more number of injuries.

“The big buildings are down. The concrete buildings are all down, the hospitals, the main markets, down and burned. A lot of people died in there. A lot of places are burning,” Australian businesswoman  in Padang told Australian radio.

“Most of the damage is in the town center in the big buildings. The little houses, the people’s houses, there are a few damaged, but nothing dramatic. It’s not all a rubble heap in terms of smaller buildings.”

“The quake was followed by a very heavy rain. Many houses and some building are flattened in my area. But I cannot yet verify too much. We will try to compile the data and distribute aid once the rain subsides,” the district mayor of Pariaman District, one of the worst hit areas told reporters.

“A number of hotels in Padang have been destroyed,” Rahmat Triyono, an  employee of the Indonesian geophysics and meteorology agency, told AFP.

“Up to now we haven’t been able to reach Padang, communications have been cut,” he added.

An eye-witness reportedly told Reuters that there was “extreme panic” in the city, with bridges collapsing,  and water from broken pipes causing flooding.

Related Links:

• Reuters Photo Gallery

• Powerful Earthquake Strikes Southern Sumatra, Indonesia
• Deadly Earthquake Strikes Java, Indonesia
• Magnitude 8.3 Quake Strikes Samoa Islands Region
• The Largest Earthquake
• Earthquakes [Main Index Page]