A huge earthquake off the coast of Papua New Guinea generated a small tsunami.
The magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck around 30 miles southeast of Kokopo at a depth of 40 miles. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center warned of a potential 3 foot high tsunami but the highest reported wave was 1.5 feet in the harbor of Rabaul.
Rabaul residents say there was no major damage and most of the water flooded parking lots near the beach or seaside. Store owners say that items were knocked off shelves but there was no structural damage.
Residents say the tremor lasted about five minutes and was so intense that residents fled into the streets from fear of building collapse.
Miraculously, officials say there were no reports or deaths or injuries from the massive quake.
Papua New Guinea lies on the Pacific “Ring of Fire”. Volcanic and earthquake activity is common in the region.
Volcanoes on opposite ends of the world erupted on Thursday.
The Bardarbunga volcano in Iceland, which has been the subject of close monitoring by seismologists since a series of earthquakes began weeks ago, finally broke through the ice covering with what the Iceland Met Office called a “fissure eruption.”
The volcano had erupted under the ice earlier this week leading to an aviation warning but it was canceled when the volcano’s activity appeared to cease. The latest eruption reportedly has lava spewing to the surface but “has not shown signs of volcanic ash.”
Despite the lack of ash, the aviation warning level has been raised to red and flights are being diverted around the volcano’s area.
Aviation experts have also placed a warning over the Tavurcur volcano in Papua New Guinea following an eruption Thursday.
The Volcanic Ash Advisory Center has been monitoring the ash cloud and providing updates to airlines. The cloud of ash has been drifting southwest since the eruption.
“The volcanic eruption reached the top of the atmosphere at 50,000 feet which is the same height as which planes travel,” said meteorologist Ian Shepherd “It’s too early to say at this point if the ash cloud will reach Australia but it was a significant eruption.”
A 6.4 magnitude earthquake has rattled Papua New Guinea.
The epicenter of the quake is reported to be 18 miles north of Rabaul on the island of New Britain. The quake was measured at 10 miles deep. Continue reading →
Just 12 hours after a massive earthquake killed dozens in Iran, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake rattled Papua New Guinea on Wednesday morning.
There was no threat of a tsunami according to scientists however the quake was very shallow. The quake centered about 11 miles east of Aitape. Continue reading →
Two large earthquakes rocked countries on opposite sides of the “Ring of Fire”.
A 7.1 earthquake shook Papua New Guinea in the South Pacific. The earthquake did not cause any major structural damage or injuries because of it’s location however it was felt for hundreds of miles. Due to the depth of the earthquake there was no tsunami warning issued for this quake.
Continue reading →