Saturday 27th February, 2010 At approximately 2:34AM local time, an 8.8 magnitude earthquake occurred offshore Maule, Chile, near the city of Concepcion which is 212 miles from the Capital Santiago. The location of the epicenter was35.846 S 72.719 W with a depth of 27 miles.Numerous aftershocks, including one that measured 6.9 magnitude were felt within hours of the initial quake.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami warning, the highest level of a tsunami alert, for the entire coast of Chile and Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Antarctica, Panama and Costa Rica as well as the Hawaiian Islands, the Philippines and parts of Russia.
Preliminary reports have indicated 52 deaths, however; this figure is expected to change as authorities are able to assess the extent of the impact of the quake.
Concepcion is Chile's second-largest city, with a population of 200,000. There are reports of collapsed buildings in Santiago. The quake was felt in several Chilean towns and in parts of Argentina as well. Some buildings in Buenos Aires were evacuated.
According to Seismologists this earthquake was a thousand times stronger than the 7.0 earthquake which affected Haiti on 12th January 2010.
The Chile earthquake occurred at the boundary between the Nazca and South American tectonic plates. These two plates are converging at a rate of 80 mm per year. Coastal Chile has a history of very large earthquakes. Since 1973, there have been 13 events of magnitude 7.0 or greater. The February 27 shock originated about 230 km north of the source region of the magnitude 9.5 earthquake of May, 1960 the largest instrumentally recorded earthquake in the world. This magnitude 9.5 earthquake killed 1655 people in southern Chile and unleashed a tsunami that crossed the Pacific, killing 61 people in Hawaii, Japan, and the Philippines. Approximately 870 km to the north of the February 27 earthquake is the source region of the magnitude 8.5 earthquake of November, 1922. This great quake significantly impacted central Chile, killing several hundred people and causing severe property damage. The 1922 quake generated a 9-meter local tsunami that inundated the Chile coast near the town of Coquimbo; the tsunami also crossed the Pacific, washing away boats in Hilo harbor, Hawaii. The magnitude 8.8 earthquake of February 27, 2010 ruptured the portion of the South American subduction zone separating these two massive historical earthquakes.
The Department of Disaster Management has already made contact with the Puerto Rico Seismic Network and no Tsunami Watches or Warnings are expected for the Virgin Islands as a result of this morning's event. Nevertheless, residents are encouraged to remain vigilante as earthquakes can occur at any moment. The Department of Disaster Management (DDM) will continue to provide updates where necessary. Please visit the DDM's website for further information.
The 2010 hurricane season is predicted to be more active than the average for the 1950-2000 seasons. The December 2009 report estimates approximately 11-16 named storms, 6-8 hurricanes and 3-5 major hurricanes occurring during the 2010 Atlantic hurricane season, which is more typical of years in an active era, such as the 1995 season.
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