UPDATE: At 3:24 Hawaii time, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center downgraded the Watch to an Advisory:
BASED ON ALL AVAILABLE DATA A MAJOR TSUNAMI IS NOT EXPECTED TO STRIKE THE STATE OF HAWAII. HOWEVER...SEA LEVEL CHANGES AND STRONG CURRENTS MAY OCCUR ALONG ALL COASTS THAT COULD BE A HAZARD TO SWIMMERS AND BOATERS AS WELL AS TO PERSONS NEAR THE SHORE AT BEACHES AND IN HARBORS AND MARINAS. THE THREAT MAY CONTINUE FOR SEVERAL HOURS AFTER THE INITIAL WAVE ARRIVAL.
The estimated time of arrival for these waves is 3:11am on Thursday, Sept. 17.
Original post below:
Hawaii is currently under a Tsunami Watch, following an 8.3 magnitude earthquake near Santiago, Chile. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center hasn’t yet said if the quake created tsunami waves that could threaten Hawaii, but they have said it definitely created local waves, ranging in amplitude from 0.4 feet to 10.2 feet. IF such waves were created, they would hit Hawaii at roughly 3:06am on the morning of Thursday, Sept. 17.
Not taking any chances, Haleakala National Park has closed Kipahulu Campground until further notice.
We’ve all been through this drill before, but here are some important links to keep close:
Click here to find out if you live in a tsunami evacuation zone.
Click here for the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center’s page on Hawaii, which will have the latest news and updates about the waves, if they’re generated.
Click here for the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, which has a great deal of disaster preparation information.
For a little historical perspective, an 8.2 magnitude quake on the central Chilean coast did not generate a tsunami in Hawaii. But a 9.6 magnitude quake on Chile’s south central coast in 1960 generated a considerable tsunami that did a lot of damage to Hawaii (mostly Hilo, where it killed 61 people).
Image courtesy Pacific Tsunami Warning Center
Comments
comments