At least five dead in a 7.6 magnitude earthquake in Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea experienced a 7.6 magnitude earthquake that left at least five dead. According to the United States Geological Survey, the earthquake struck at a depth of 38 miles about 41 miles from the eastern town of Kainantu. The quake shook the country, damaged buildings and triggered landslides. As per information, two persons died in remote mountain villages. Three others were buried alive. Arrangements were made to airlift four others to hospital. They were in critical condition. There was widespread damage as a landslide buried homes and “split” one village where people “lost their houses.” The nation’s leader, James Marape, described the earthquake as “massive.” He advised his people to be cautious and added that the damage would not be as massive as the 2018 earthquake. It had killed an estimated 150 people. Five killed as powerful earthquake strikes Papua New Guinea. The authorities have yet to assess the extent of damage and number of casualties.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Asia and the Pacific said people had suffered injuries from falling structures or debris, and some health centers, homes, rural roads and highways are damaged. There are damages in the power infrastructure with consequent outages across the Eastern Highlands. Residents shared images and videos on social media of cracked roads, damaged buildings and cars, and items falling off supermarket shelves. Small aviation companies and missionary groups involved themselves to airlift some of the injured across the rugged jungle landscape. Locals who resided near the epicenter described the vibration as much more vigorous than previous quakes. Earthquakes are common in Papua New Guinea because it sits on the Pacific Ocean’s “Ring of Fire.” This is a hotspot for seismic activity due to friction between tectonic plates. A 9.1 magnitude quake in Indonesia in 2004 triggered a tsunami that killed 220,000 throughout the region.

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A shallow 6.5-magnitude quake hit Pidie Jaya district in Aceh and left At least 52 people dead and hundreds injured with devastation all around. There were toppled homes and flattened buildings and people ran to higher ground. There was no alert of any tsunami.
The earthquake struck Aceh province on Indonesia's Sumatra island.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 7 December 2016.

The death toll is likely to increase as rescue crews sift through the rubble to try and locate those trapped below. The destruction is on a massive scale because hundreds of homes, mosques and shops have collapsed. A local hospital and school were also heavily damaged.
The earthquake was felt across much of Aceh - it had been devastated by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
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7.4-magnitude quake strikes Fukushima prefecture in Japan - Tsunami waves from 30cm to 1.4m seen

A 7.4-magnitude quake struck Fukushima prefecture in Japan and gave rise to Tsunami waves from 30cm to 1.4m seen but, a Tsunami warning issued earlier was later downgraded. Residents were, however, urged to "evacuate immediately".
The earthquake shook buildings in Tokyo, 240 kilometres southwest of the epicentre. Warnings had been issued for waves of up to 3m, but the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre has indicated that the tsunami threat has passed. There were, of course, the chance of fluctuations in sea levels along some coasts and people should remain alert.
This has been reported in nzherald.co.nz dated 22 November 2016.

Officials in Japan are keeping alerts in place because the danger is not over and sea levels are still rising. As a precautionary measure, the cooling system of the number 3 reactor at the Fukushima power plant was temporarily shut down but has, later, been restored. The reactor temperature is under control.
Incidentally, the magnitude of the quake, which struck at 6am Japan time, was initially put at 7.3, before being revised down to 6.9 and then up again to 7.4 - at a depth of 25km.
Earthquakes are common in Japan since it is one of the world's most seismically active areas. It accounts for about 20 per cent of the world's earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater. It may be recalled that on March 11, 2011, the quake that struck Fukushima was of magnitude 9 - the strongest quake in Japan on record. It triggered a massive Tsunami and resulted in triggering the world's worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl a quarter of a century earlier.


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It has killed two people, including one of a heart attack and its epicenter was located about 57 miles northeast of Christchurch in the country's South Island.
This has been reported in news.sky.com dated 14 November 2016.

Due to the quake, railway tracks were ripped up and tossed 10 metres, while landslips dumped hundreds of tonnes of debris onto the main highway. In addition, electricity and phones were also down in the coastal town of Kaikoura of 2,000 residents. This town is well known among tourists since it is a base for whale-watching trips.
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This has been reported in nzherald.co.nz dated 5 June 2016.

The study had been commissioned by the DLNR and the North Pacific Marine Science Organisation. The aim of the study was to find out how much of the debris was from the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, which struck Japan in 2011 and triggered the Fukushima disaster. This debris from tsunami was washing up on Hawaiian shores and throughout the Pacific over the past few years.
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The mayor of Illapel, located near the epicenter, has revealed that a 26-year-old woman had been killed by a collapsing wall, and 15 others were reported injured.
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Underwater volcano in the Caribbean Sea off Grenada could erupt any moment

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The name of the volcano is ‘Kick 'em Jenny it sits 180m below sea level off the northern coast of Grenada and has produced no less than 200 small earthquakes since it began stirring on July 11. Experts at the University of the West Indies' Seismic Research Centre have raised its threat level to orange, predicting that it could erupt at any point.
This has been reported in dailymail.co.uk dated 25 July 2015.

In case if the volcano does erupt, then not only passing ships but, nearby islands will be in danger of being hit by a tsunami. In the opinion of scientists, the risk is relatively low, but as a precautionary measure, both shipping and marine vessels in the region have been cautioned. Recreational ships have been ordered to maintain a distance of at least 3 miles from the summit.
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The volcano had last erupted 14 years ago, in 2001.
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This incident has taken place near the town of Rausu on Hokkaido Island situated at the country's northern tip.
This new stretch of shoreline, which resembles what used to be the sea floor, had initially sparked fears that a major earthquake was imminent. It may be recalled that in 2011, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake had struck Japan and devastated large stretches of land and left thousands dead.

The quake of 2011 coupled with a Tsunami had led to meltdowns and radioactive leaks at the Fukushima nuclear plant. However, as far as Rausu is concerned, geologists have assured that the phenomenon was probably a result of a nearby landslide, caused by melting ice and snow that displaced a portion of the seabed that rose and came in sight.
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This has been reported in news.sky.com dated 13 April 2015.

These whales are in fact a species of dolphin and they have been found to have washed up along a 6-mile (10km) stretch of the Pacific coast of Hokota, located nearly 60 miles (100km) north of Tokyo. Officials are investigating the cause of the stranding.
The fears of an impending earthquake are based on the appearance of 50 melon-headed whales six days before the devastating undersea earthquake in 2011 that resulted in a Tsunami and earthquake and left 19,000 people dead.
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This has been reported in foxnews.com dated 22 March 2015.
It will cost nearly $6.8-billion to build and critics feel that such walls would not just damage the marine ecology and scenery but also act as a hindrance to vital fisheries. Moreover, such walls would do precious little to protect residents – they are supposed to relocate to higher ground.
However, those who support the move feel the sea walls are a necessary evil – it would provide jobs for some, at least for a time.
Incidentally, a 7.2-meter (24-foot) -high sea wall had been built years earlier to help stave off erosion of Iwanuma's beaches. It also had thin pine trees planted along the coast. In spite of that, the tsunami swept up to 5-Km inland and passengers and staff watched from the upper floors and roof of the airport as the waves carried off cars, buildings and aircraft. It also smashed most of the homes in densely populated suburbs near the beach.

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