Hawaii Earthquake with a 5.3 magnitude hits the Big Island
August 14, 2007 | Filed under Environment, News
At 7.38 p.m an Earthquake with a 5.3 magnitude has hit the big island, Hawaii, many have been waiting for Hurricane Flossie to hit, but that should just pass south of the island tomorrow. Residents in Hilo and also Volcano have said that they felt a strong shake, although there are no reports of any damage as yet.
The epicenter of the earthquake was 25 miles south of Hilo, Hawaii is mainly rural with about 150,000 people, many of which live on the west or northeast side of the big island.
Hawaii must have some very bad luck, as they have had to deal with facing Hurricane Flossie, and now with this 5.3 magnitude earthquake. We wish the residents all well, and hope that there have not been any casualties.
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Hear the latest Hawaii Civil Defense audio update:
http://estatenoni.com/HawaiiIslandGrown/
5.0+ earthquakes aren’t as rare as they indicate. They happen at least once or twice in as many years. Additionally, The Big Island experiences many smaller quakes in the 3.0+ range. The hvo.gov has the last two weeks Earthquake data plus large earthwuake history. Most of these earthquakes are caused by the shifting weight of magma moving from chamber to chamber as well as the inflation of the mountain as it fills those chambers. You can image sometimes something has to let go one way or another. Lately, it’s been letting out from 4 new fissures in the volcanic ridge. With all the lava flowing out lately, it’s no wonder we’re having a few rumblers.
Aloha,
I just put up the last audio.
Looks like Flossie will miss us.
I hope.
Lucky we live Hawaii.
Stay safe
Patrick
estatenoni
I was at Kona’s lower Starbucks for the last big earthquake 6.7 and then another big aftershock 5. something a few minutes later.
The big island is new and its mass is rising daily, this may explain some of the earthquake probability… part of the power of the islands is that they stand out alone naked vulnerable in nature without no protection from the many forces of nature, including the multiple social invasions which were all uninvited and still need healing.
Hurricane fears and earthquake fears it’s all part of the magic of the mauna of the islands.
I would also say that comparatively, locals take this all in stride, it’s nothing new for them.
Aloha, blessed Hawaii, be safe everyone.
Definitely. The Big Islands volcanoes are exactly why we hae so many earthquakes. 3.0 and higher earthquakes are common a many times a year. 5.0 and higher, a couple to a few times a year. 6.0 and higher are rare. The large October 15th earthquake last year lasted for about 20 seconds and was the longest and most powerful EQ I’ve ever felt here. That quake was completely unrelated to recent volcanic activity as part of the sea mount on the other side of the island from the volcano collapsed in an massive underwater landslide. Luckily it was all underwater and no water was displaced to create a tsunami.
With hurricanes, we are lucky the islands are large enough they can tend to divert storms to the north or south in addition to Hawaiis cooler waters weaken the storms greatly when they approach.
Yes, us locals are used to it. Just have plenty water, batteries, flashlight, radio, and food and hope nothing happens.