6.9-magnitude earthquake hits Hawaii - Xinhua
An earthquake measuring 6.9 magnitude on the Richter scale jolted the Big Island of Hawaii on Friday, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said.
www.xinhuanet.comI don’t have live tool access right now to fetch the very latest updates, but I can share what’s established about the 1975 Hawaii earthquake and point you to reliable sources for current updates.
Direct answer
- The 1975 Hawaii earthquake occurred on November 29, 1975, with a moment magnitude of about 7.2 (some sources list 7.1) and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII, causing significant damage on the southeastern part of the Big Island and triggering a tsunami. It resulted in two fatalities and substantial property damage, and it was followed by a tsunami that affected multiple spots along the Hawaii coast.[3][4][7]
Background and key details
- Location and magnitude: The event struck near Kalapana on the southeastern coast of the Big Island, at roughly 19°20′N, 155°01′W, with a magnitude around 7.2 on the moment scale.[7]
- Casualties and damage: Two people were killed, and damage was estimated in the low tens of millions of dollars in 1975 dollars (commonly cited as about $4–4.1 million in direct property damage on the island, though broader economic impacts were higher).[4][3]
- Tsunami: A tsunami with waves reportedly reaching up to around 40 feet (about 12–14 meters) struck the southern and eastern coasts within minutes of the quake, driven by submarine displacement and associated seafloor movement; this generated additional destruction and displacement across the coastline.[4][7]
- Aftereffects: The earthquake was accompanied or closely followed by volcanic activity in the region (notably activity linked to Kilauea), as well as a cascade of aftershocks and ground deformation in the Kalapana area.[7]
Context and follow-on resources
- For a concise technical summary with figures, see USGS-related publications and government summaries from late 1975 that describe the quake, the tsunami, and the emergency response (examples include USGS atmospheric/tsunami reports and NOAA/PMEL tsunami analyses).[8][7]
- If you’re researching historical impacts and local narratives, Hawaii state and county historical resources and major disaster reports from 1975 provide aboard-the-record perspectives, including official disaster declarations and early assessments.[4]
Recent or latest developments
- If you’re looking for the very latest news about this event as it relates to anniversaries, memorials, or retrospective analyses, I can search current news sources I’m connected to, but I’d need to run a live search to pull the most up-to-date coverage.
Would you like me to fetch current news items or official reports (e.g., USGS or NOAA archives) about the 1975 Hawaii earthquake and tsunami, and present a concise, sourced summary with key figures and maps? I can also provide a short, annotated timeline of the event if that would be helpful.