7.8 Magnitude Quake Sparks Tsunami Alert
July 15, 2009
Filed under News
Earthquake sparks NZ-Australia tsunami alert
A 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck off the south-west coast of New Zealand, prompting a tsunami warning. The tremor struck around the tip of New Zealand’s South Island, generating warnings of a low-level tsunami. People in coastal areas were for a time advised to move to higher ground.
New Zealand said the quake, west of Invercargill, measured 7.8 magnitude, and a second quake about 20 minutes later measured 6.1. New Zealand’s Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences initially recorded the first quake at 6.6 magnitude, before upgrading it.
The initial tremor struck 5km (3 miles) below ground in the remote Fiordland region at 2122 (0922 GMT), said the government institute, though US experts said it was much deeper.
New Zealand issued a tsunami warning for a string of its coastal towns and cities, but later cancelled it. Australia also scrapped its alert, but had said a tsunami was detected in the Tasman Sea heading towards the country’s south-east coast. The warning was downgraded to a “small boat alert” after about an hour. Officials had earlier been concerned it could bring coastal flooding.
The tremor lasted at least a minute and was felt as a rolling motion across New Zealand’s South Island. New Zealand records more than 14,000 earthquakes a year, but only about 150 are felt by residents and fewer than 10 annually cause damage.
== PRELIMINARY EARTHQUAKE REPORT ==
Region: OFF W. COAST OF S. ISLAND, N.Z.
Geographic coordinates: 45.721S, 166.643E
Magnitude: 7.8 Mw
Depth: 35 km
Universal Time (UTC): 15 Jul 2009 09:22:32
Time near the Epicenter: 15 Jul 2009 20:22:32
Local standard time in your area: 15 Jul 2009 10:22:32
Location with respect to nearby cities:
152 km (94 miles) WNW (299 degrees) of Invercargill, New Zealand
176 km (109 miles) WSW (244 degrees) of Queenstown, New Zealand
299 km (186 miles) W (272 degrees) of Dunedin, New Zealand
821 km (510 miles) SW (230 degrees) of WELLINGTON, New Zealand
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