Tag: Quake

China marks 10th anniversary of devastating earthquake

    BEIJING, China (AFP) — China marked the 10th anniversary Saturday of a massive earthquake that killed tens of thousands in southwest Sichuan province and left scars on the nation that have yet to fully heal. More than 87,000 were left dead or missing when a 7.9-magnitude quake struck Sichuan on the afternoon of May 12, 2008, including 5,335 school pupils. The disaster provoked widespread grief in China, but also outrage after it emerged 7,000 […]

Successive quakes hit Davao Occidental

(Eagle News) — Successive earthquakes hit Davao Occidental early Friday,  May 11, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said. At 4:06 a.m., a 5.0-magnitude earthquake hit 169 kilometers southeast of Sarangani. Seconds later, a 4.7-magnitude one struck 123 kilometers southeast of Jose Abad Santos. Depth of focus of the 5.0-magnitude earthquake was at 51 kilometers, while the 4.7-magnitude earthquake had a depth of focus of 86 kilometers.   Both earthquakes were of tectonic origin. PHIVOLCS […]

UPDATED: Major quake hits Hawaii, prompts further volcano eruptions

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP)–A magnitude 6.9 earthquake shook Hawaii’s Big Island on Friday, prompting fresh eruptions of a volcano that has been spewing lava near residential areas, forcing hundreds of people to flee. The US Geological Survey said the quake struck at 12:32 pm (2232 GMT) and was centered on the south flank of the Kilauea volcano, which first erupted on Thursday after a series of tremors on the island. “This is in almost […]

Quake hits near Iran nuclear power plant

TEHRAN, Iran (AFP) — A moderately strong 5.9-magnitude earthquake Thursday hit Iran’s southern region of Bushehr, home to the country’s only nuclear power plant, without causing casualties or damage, media reported. “The earthquake had no effect on the activity of the plant,” Mahmoud Jafari, project manager at the Russian-built Bushehr nuclear plant, said according to the Telegram news channel of Iran’s state television. The University of Tehran’s seismology center said the epicenter of the earthquake […]

‘Footquakes’: Messi really does make the Earth tremble

by Marlowe Hood Agence France Presse VIENNA, Australia (AFP) — It’s a scientific fact: when living football legends Neymar or Lionel Messi scores a goal, the Earth moves and the ground shakes. Don’t believe it? Ask Jordi Diaz, a researcher at the Institute of Earth Sciences Jaume Almera in Barcelona. He’s got the hard proof. “We put a seismometer inside a building in Barcelona,” he explained at a geosciences conference in Vienna, where he presented […]

Strong quake rattles Papua New Guinea

  SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — A powerful 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck a remote part of Papua New Guinea on Saturday, US seismologists said, but there were no immediate reports of damage. The quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) some 195 kilometers west of the town of Mount Hagen, the US Geological Survey said. Much of the Pacific nation is mountainous and remote, meaning it often takes days for information about damage from […]

5.9 intensity quake shakes Mexico anew, scares residents

  MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP) — A medium intensity earthquake struck southwestern Mexico early Monday morning, scaring residents already shaken by a powerful quake two days earlier, though there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage. The US Geological Survey said its magnitude was 5.9 and it struck at a depth of 40.2 kilometers (25 miles), some 32 kilometers (20 miles) northeast of the town of Santa Catarina Mechoacan in Oaxaca state at 0657 […]

Death toll rises to 14 in Mexico helicopter crash

SANTIAGO JAMILTEPEC, Mexico (AFP) — The death toll from a helicopter crash that followed a strong earthquake in southern Mexico rose to 14 Sunday, as the defense minister said the government assumed full responsibility. The tragedy struck Friday night as a military helicopter flew the interior minister and other officials to an area near the epicenter of a 7.2-magnitude earthquake that shook Mexico earlier that evening. Officials say a dust cloud caused the pilot to […]

Mexico minister survives helicopter crash that kills two on ground

  MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP) — A helicopter carrying the Mexican interior minister and a governor crashed near the epicenter of a powerful earthquake in the country’s south on Friday, killing two people who were on the ground, officials said. Interior Minister Alfonso Navarrete and Alejandro Murat, governor of the state of Oaxaca, were on their way to survey the scene of the destruction left by the 7.2 magnitude earthquake when the accident occurred, the […]

Search for Taiwan quake victims ends as toll rises to 17

  TAIPEI, Taiwan (AFP) — Rescuers Sunday ended their search of a Taiwan building partially toppled by a 6.4-magnitude earthquake as the last trapped pair were presumed dead, bringing the final death toll to 17. Thousands of emergency workers had combed through rubble at the foot of the 12-storey Yun Tsui apartment block since the quake struck the eastern city of Hualien late Tuesday. It was left leaning at around a 50-degree angle by the quake, […]

Earthquake, wind and fire: extreme conditions hit Olympics

by Peter Stebbings © Agence France-Presse PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (AFP) — An earthquake triggered an alert and high winds disrupted competition at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics Sunday, as officials warned of a severe freeze and urged fans to wrap up warm. After a bitterly cold first night of competition, a shallow 4.6-magnitude earthquake jolted the eastern portion of South Korea overnight, prompting warnings on mobile phones. Early on Sunday, ski officials were forced to postpone the showpiece […]

Taiwan quake death toll reaches 12 as rescuers pull more bodies from quake rubble

  HUALIEN, Taiwan (AFP) — After hours of painstaking search efforts, Taiwanese rescue workers pulled two more bodies from the flattened remains of a hotel Friday, bringing the death toll from a deadly 6.4-magnitude quake to 12. Scores of emergency responders combed the rubble of the lower floors of the 12-storey Yun Tsui apartment block, which housed the Beauty Stay Hotel and had pancaked during the quake, leaving the building leaning at a 50-degree angle […]