Earthquakes in 2010 - News Updates

Dangers and Results of Earthquakes in 2010

Moderate Earthquake strikes Indonesia. (27 December 2009)

A moderate, 5.8-magnitude earthquake struck off Indonesia's restive Papua province today but there were no immediate reports of damage and no tsunami warning was issued, officials said.

The quake struck at 8:19 pm (1219 GMT), 113 kilometres southwest of provincial capital Jayapura at a depth of 15 kilometres, the meteorology and geophysics agency said.

"We've not received reports of damage or casualty yet," the agency's technical chief Suharjono told AFP.

Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity.

A 7.6-magnitude quake that struck Sumatra island on September 30 killed more than 1,000 people.

Earthquake in Baja California. (01 January 2010)

There is rather frightening news for the California residents at the year end. The Northern Baja California has suffered a major earthquake measuring 5.8 magnitudes. It was followed by two smaller earthquakes there after. The quake hit so strongly that the buildings swayed 100 miles away in the San Diego too.

Until recently there was no report of any massive damage or injury to the civilians. The Baja main earthquake traveled around 20 miles southeast of Mexicali, the Mexican Border city. There was another smaller scale 4.9 magnitude in the Calexico border which fell on the US side. The buildings were reportedly shaking quite wildly. The area is prone for quakes which are more of frightening emotionally than causing any heavy damage.

It was 10:48 AM PST in Southern California when a sudden earthquake of 5.9 magnitudes struck Baja California. The shake was felt in some parts of Mexico and Southern California. Not one but two earthquake struck Baja. The quakes were centered in Guadalupe Victoria,Baja California, Mexico with a nominal depth of 18 miles. Cynthia B. It was reported in the morning from some areas.

The quake which started in Baja California was strong enough to be felt in Coachella Valley. There has been mild reports of damages from the Mexicali area that include broken window panes and cracking of the walls.

Earthquake in Tajikistan. (03 January 2010)

Some 20,000 people were left homeless by an earthquake which hit Tajikistan's mountainous Gorno-Badakhshan province, an official said.

The earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale took place Saturday and affected two locations in the province's Vanchsky district in Tajikistan's Pamir Mountains, a spokesman of the local administration said.

"Several dozens houses inhabited by some 20,000 people have been destroyed completely or partially," he said.

Rock falls and mudslides caused by the quake blocked a road linking the Vanchsky district with the province's administrative centre of Khorog, he added.

Earthquake in Solomon Islands. (07 January 2010)

Aid is heading to the isolated areas in the Solomon Islands struck by a tsunami and continual earthquakes.

Assessment teams were surveying the damage on the remote Rendova and Tetepare islands yesterday after a series of earthquakes caused a tsunami and landslide on Monday.

The tsunami was sparked by a magnitude 7.2 quake about 9.30am local time. Earthquakes have continued in the region since, including a 6.9 aftershock on Tuesday night. The aftershock is not believed to have caused any further damage.

No deaths were reported. Photographs taken from police helicopters show debris lining the foreshore and damaged houses on the coasts of Rendova and Tetepare, plus damage caused by landslides.

There are reports that up to 200 homes have been destroyed on Rendova. Tetepare is an eco-reserve and resort. All the tourists staying there, including two New Zealanders, were evacuated.

A spokeswoman for the National Disaster Management Office said yesterday that the village of Bainara, on Rendova, was the worst hit, with 16 homes destroyed, and 60 damaged.

About 1400 people had been affected, more than a third of Rendova's population. Aid was already being set up, she said. "Our team are already on the ground."

Water, medical supplies and tarpaulins were among the items making their way to the area, which had no communications. Other agencies, including World Vision, Unicef and Save the Children, were also helping out.

The destruction in the Solomon Islands comes three years after more than 50 people were killed by a tsunami there. The memory of that event is thought to have saved lives this time, as people took early precautions.

Earthquake strikes California coast. (10 January 2010)

The US Geological Survey says a 6.5 magnitude earthquake has struck off the coast of Northern California.

The USGS says the quake hit at about 4:27pm on Saturday (0027 GMT Sunday) about 27 miles (43 kilometers) from Eureka, a coastal city of about 26,000 that's 110 miles (177 kilometers) south of the Oregon border.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says there is no threat of the quake generating a tsunami. USGS geophysicist Richard Buckmaster says the quake was felt as far south as Capitola in central California, and as far north as Tiller in central Oregon.

The San Francisco Bay area was struck by two light earthquakes on Thursday and Friday.

Haiti Earthquake - Death toll may be 200,000. (13 January 2010)

he leading US general in Haiti has said it is a "reasonable assumption" that up to 200,000 people may have died in last Tuesday's earthquake.

Lt Gen Ken Keen said the disaster was of "epic proportions", but it was "too early to know" the full human cost.

Rescuers pulled more people alive from the rubble at the weekend, but at least 70,000 people have already had burials.

Relief efforts are being slowed by bottlenecks, and many thousands of survivors are fending for themselves.

Many Haitians are trying to leave the devastated capital city of Port-au-Prince, and there are security concerns amid reports of looting and violence.

More than 2,000 US marines were expected to arrive in the region on 18 January to bolster US troops and UN peacekeepers already on the ground.

On Monday, European Union nations pledged 200m euros ($287m; £176m) from the EU budget to help rebuilding efforts in Haiti.

Venezuela earthquake 2010. (15 January 2010)

Venezuela earthquake 2010, Venezuela news: 5.6 magnitude earthquake shakes Venezuela. Venezuelan capital and many other cities in this oil rich nation were rattled by earthquake that was enough to force people outside their houses. People feared for their lives as the earthquake came merely days after hitting Haiti where around a hundred thousand people are believed to have been killed.

The earthquake’s intensity was measured at 5.6 point on Richter scale.

Reports say that earthquake shook major oil exporter Venezuelas coastline, according to the US Geological Survey on Friday.

Venezuela is a country in the north of South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea. It is bounded on the south by Brazil, and on the west by Colombia. Venezuela has a total area of 916,445 square kilometres (353,841 sq mi) and a land area of 882,050 square kilometres (340,560 sq mi), about twice the size of California.

Shaped roughly like an inverted triangle, the country has a 2,800 kilometres (1,700 mi) coastline.

With 2,800 kilometres (1,740 mi) of coastline, there is a variety of landscapes. The extreme northeastern extensions of the Andes reach into Venezuela's northwest and continue along the northern Caribbean coast. Pico Bolívar, the nation's highest point at 4,979 metres (16,335 ft), lies in this region.

Strong earthquake strikes off Argentine coast. (17 January 2010)

Argentina's Civil Protection Directorate reported an earthquake measuring 6.3 degrees on the Richter Scale on Sunday, with its epicenter 354 kilometers southeast of Tierra del Fuego.

"The quake was not felt in Ushuaia (the provincial capital)," said Hector Varela, head of the directorate in Ushuaia, 3,260 kilometers from the national capital of Buenos Aires.

"There are no victims nor damage. The movement was not felt anywhere in the province," he added.

The Argentine Army Intelligence's watching stations and those of the Navy Prefecture did not detect the quake, he said.

Earthquake was also reported by the United States Geological Survey, which said that the quake struck 21 kilometers under the surface of the earth in Argentine waters.

Small Earthquake in China - 7 die (18 January 2010)

Seven people died and one was missing in landslides triggered by a low-grade earthquake in southwestern China at the weekend, the government said Monday.

The quake struck the Guangling district of Guizhou province at 5:35 pm (0935 GMT) on Sunday, said a report on the website of the Guizhou Earthquake Information Bureau.

"Seven people died in two landslides caused by the quake and another one is still missing. We are trying to get more information," an official in Guizhou's Civil Affairs Department, who gave only his surname, Zhao, told AFP by phone.

Xinhua news agency said the quake had measured 4.0 on the Richter scale. The US Geological Survey, which tracks seismic activity worldwide, made no mention of the reported earthquake on its website.

A separate report by Xinhua news agency said three had died in the quake.

No other details were immediately available.

Stay Connected With Today News Updates for Earthquake News Updates.