Category Archives: Earth Stuff

News of Earth Changes, climate shifts, weather anomalies, volcanoes, etc

Melbourne, Australia — Strong Earthquake

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Strong earthquake in the greater Melbourne area, Australia

Last update: June 19, 2012 at 2:38 pm by By

Summary 14:00UTC:

This was recorded as the largest quake in Victoria since the 1903 Warnambool events (Mb 5.3), however the 1969 event of Ml5.3 and 1982 event of Ml5.4 are also in the same ballpark. The Seismological research center of ES&S still has the earthquake recorded as an Ml5.5.

A number of foodstock losses will also occur at various supermarkets with many items being thrown off the shelves.

A number of houses have recorded damage in the form of cracks to walls, ceilings and in other concrete as well as other minor damage such as fallen tiles.

Update 13:10UTC:

Still waiting for further damage reports from the ground, with at least 25 potential instances of damage being recorded at this point through the SES. VicSES has implemented a Quake safety awareness and response program “QuakeSafe” in the past few years.

Update 13:05UTC:

Residential property has sustained minor damage from the tremor. Some residential properties in Moe and some in the La Trobe Valley appeared to be the hardest hit.

“There’s been cracks in walls, damage to ceilings and windows, and possibly some building damage so far” said SES Spokesman Lachlan Quick talking to news services in Australia.

The instance of damage from further afield in Moe has brought the potential estimated damage bill to between $0.7 and 4.1 million AUD from rapid loss estimation packages but further calibration is required on the intensities from the ground before any concrete estimate can be released.

Summary 13:00UTC:
– A shallow Mb5.3 earthquake struck just after 20:53 (8:53pm) local time around the Latrobe Valley at Childers, south of Trafalgar.
– Over 35 calls have been put into the Victorian SES for assistance.
– No major damage reported as yet.
– Around 7000 people live in the VI intensity area, with many more in the V intensity area.

Update 12:56UTC: Anyone living in or near Childers with Internet access would be very much appreciated to submit a felt report. Thankyou to all Victorians for their responses – it really helps us to pinpoint the damage area!

Update 12:50UTC: Just to show the effect of this quake around 10-12 km away from the epicenter in Trafalgar – “Have experienced lighter tremors in this area before i.e. Mid Gippsland eminating in South Gippsland Region, but this was clearly the most dramatic…. Previous ones were around 4.3. Whole house shaking with this one i.e. quite violently more of a 5 or above and accompanying strange sound/noise. All the neighbours ran out into the street afterwards. Felt at first like a sudden wind”.

From Mirboo North – “Shaking and noise lasted about 20 seconds? I have never felt anything so violent in my life.”

From Moe – “Was in the car, felt like people jumping on it. Got home stuff over the floor and cupboard doors opened.”

The seismogram at Toolangi (about 120km away)

Update 12:48UTC: For people interested in the economics of the region, East Gippsland has a $1.72 billion GDP mainly due to the manufacturing and construction industry. The area affected however, is slightly west of this area, and has a capital stock of around $65 million with less than 1% damage expected, meaning that there is likely to be less than $1 million damage at this stage based on historic statistics, if any! Trafalgar used to have a cheese factory but was closed in 1990, meaning the cruel fate seen to the cheese in Italy, will not occur here.

Update 12:44UTC:  VICSES has recieved 35 requests for assistance so far from the broader Gippsland area and parts of metropolitan Melbourne.

Update: At least 7,000 people would be within potentially damaging area. With the main towns being Yarragon (1100+), Trafalgar (2600+) and Mirboo North (2000+) within this area. The larger towns/cities of Moe-Newborough, Morwell, Yarragul and Leongatha are far enough away to have only very slight to no damage.

Update: The quake would have been felt for around 30 seconds looking at the following seismogram of the event. The Victorian State Emergency Service (SES) have received 20 requests for assistance in the broader Gippsland area and parts of Melbourne. No significant damage has as such been recorded however. Mirboo North could also have sustained cracks in houses.

Update: It has also been felt at about Intensity V in Morwell. Childers is expected to have an intensity of VI or VII.

The local view of the epicentral area. Childers is a small rural community. Courtesy: Homesales.

Update: The epicenter was located about 10km south of the Princes Highway, the main truck and transport route around Australia.

Update: Mb5.3 as recorded by Geoscience Australia – also SW of Moe. This will cause slight damage such as broken windows and cracking in the immediate area. It has been recorded near the village of Childers near Yarragon North. This is located south of Trafalgar. Being dark given that it is winter in Australia, it will be difficult to evaluate the damage.

It should be said that the earthquake hypocenter location has not been finalised from Geoscience Australia yet.

Update: The 1922 earthquake was the last earthquake to cause damage in Victoria with a magnitude higher. Since the 1800s, there have been at least 15 damaging earthquakes in Victoria of significance, the last being in 2009. The famous Warnambool earthquakes of 1903, and the Selwyn Fault quake of 1932 have been the most famous. – CATDAT Damaging Earthquakes Database.

Update: Ml5.5, 10km depth. Residents have recorded shaking of up to 40 seconds, with some soft soils in the area meaning shaking would have been felt longer than expected for such a magnitude.

Update: USGS has the epicenter out near Trafalgar, SW of Moe. Felt reports from Trafalgar would be appreciated.

Update: The earthquake has been given as Ml5.5 by some sources. The earthquake is far enough away from power stations to not have any problems, but some local lines may be affected.

Update: Victorian Police say they have received a number of calls in relation to the tremor. They say they do not have any reports of major damage which is expected with the intensities seen. The news caused immediate panic on the internet. The Geoscience Australia website crashed as people flocked online to see what had happened. We will keep you posted.

Update : This earthquake has been felt at a V intensity at Moe-Yallourn, IV at Morwell, III in Melbourne and other areas. It is likely to have caused some minor damage near the epicenter.

All historic damaging earthquakes in Australia can be seen in this paper here on the socio-economic effects of Australian earthquakes.

Update : Moe and Latrobe Valley is a famous coalmining and electricity production industry area. In addition, they have had earthquakes recently near Mt. Baw Baw of the same magnitude in 1996, Ml5.0.

The coal mining and electricity production industry (Wiki)

Update : The epicenter is in the greater Melbourne area, very close to Trafalgar, Narracan and Moe
The earthquake is very shallow and has a Magnitude who can inflict some minor damage.
Based on the overwhelming number of reports we are receiving, a merely light top moderate shaking has been experienced by many people.

An earthquake of magnitude 5.2 occurred in the highly populated region of Victoria in Australia. The earthquake happened 5km from Trafalgar. The nearest populated places are: Mirboo North (18km), North Mirboo (18km), Boolarra (16km), Darlimurla (14km), Hallston (19km), Allambee South (14km), Delburn (10km), Thorpdale South (11km), Yinnar (14km), Childers (10km), Hazelwood (15km), Thorpdale (5km), Narracan (4km), Allambee (14km), Trafalgar South (3km), Gainsborough (20km), Cloverlea (17km), Coalville (6km), Morwell (18km), Yarragon (12km), Haunted Hills (13km), Darnum (17km), Yallourn (15km), Moe (9km), Trafalgar East (8km), Tanjil South (16km), Shady Creek (19km), Willow Grove (19km). The closest civilian airport is La Trobe Regional (25km).

Most important Earthquake Data:
Magnitude : 5.2 (USGS), 5.3 Mb (body wave magnitude) Geoscience Australia.
UTC Time : Tuesday, June 19, 2012 at 10:53:29 UTC
Local time at epicenter : Tuesday, June 19, 2012 at 08:53:29 PM at epicenter
Depth (Hypocenter) : 9.9 km USGS, 10km GA
Geo-location(s) :

for more information and updates, go to:    http://earthquake-report.com/2012/06/19/strong-earthquake-in-the-greater-melbourne-area-australia/

6/16 Phillipines Earthquake & Updates Global Quakes

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6/16/2012 — 6.1 magnitude in Philippines — Global earthquake overview

watch the update here:

 

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Use the links here to monitor earthquakes nationally, and internationally:

http://sincedutch.wordpress.com/2011/11/30/11302011-list-of-earthquake-links-for-global-monitoring/

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screenshots of the last 7 days — 4.0M and greater internationally .. 2.5M and greater in the USA –  USGS feed via earthquake 3d:

Eastern Hemisphere:

Western Hemisphere:

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Here are the statistics on the 6.1 magnitude earthquake in Luzon , Philippines :

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/usb000ahkr.php

from:    http://sincedutch.wordpress.com/

Did You Find May Hot? Well, It Was!!!

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Planet Sees Second Warmest May on Record

Wynne Parry, LiveScience Senior Writer
Date: 14 June 2012
Global weather events for May 2012.
Global weather events for May 2012.
CREDIT: NOAA

Last month, the global average temperature climbed to the second highest for May on record since 1880, according to U.S. National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) records.

Much of the world, including nearly all of Europe, Asia, northern Africa, most of North America and southern Greenland experienced above average May temperatures. In fact, last month wrapped up the warmest spring on record for the continental U.S., NOAA records show.

The global May record included the combined global land and ocean average surface temperatures for the month, which 1.19 degrees Fahrenheit (0.66 degrees Celsius) above the 20th-century average of 58.5 F (14.8 C). This record was beat only in 2010, when the global average was 1.24 F (0.69 C) above the 20th-century average.

The Northern Hemisphere saw its warmest May on record — 1.53 F, or 0.85 C above average — while the Southern Hemisphere’s May ranked ninth warmest among all Mays on record, at 0.85 F (0.47 C) above average.

Of course, it wasn’t unusually warm everywhere. Australia, Alaska and parts of the western U.S.-Canadian border were notably cooler than average.

Snow cover on the Northern Hemisphere was significantly below average in May, according to NOAA records.

Globally, this spring ranked as the fourth warmest. Meanwhile, May brought a slew of temperature records to the continental U.S. after an unusually warm spring and mild winter.

Because of natural fluctuations in weather, climate scientists are loath to connect events that occur over a short-time frame, from a strong storm to an unusual warm spring, to climate change. However, the warming effect of humans’ greenhouse gas emissions forms a backdrop for the weather the world is experiencing and shows up as a longer-term trend. It is not a coincidence that the first decade of this century was the warmest on record, according to NOAA’s State of Climate in 2010 report.

from:    http://www.livescience.com/20963-planet-sees-warmest-record.html

Hurricane Carlotta Targetting Mexico

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Hurricane Carlotta bears down on Mexico’s Pacific coast
Posted by: JeffMasters, 4:10 PM GMT on June 15, 2012 +32
Hurricane Carlotta has steadily intensified today as it heads northwest towards the Mexican coast east of Acapulco. Recent satellite loops show a well-organized storm with a prominent eye, solid eyewall with cold cloud-tops, and good low-level spiral banding. Carlotta may be undergoing rapid intensification, thanks to favorable sea surface temperatures near 30°C (86°F) and moderate wind shear of 10 – 20 knots. A hurricane hunter mission is en-route, and will arrive at the storm near 2pm EDT on Friday to see how strong Carlotta has become. Carlotta’s rain bands have already moved over the coast of Mexico a few hundred miles east of Acapulco, as seen on Puerto Ánoel radar.


Figure 1. Morning satellite image of Carlotta.


Figure 2. Morning radar image of Carlotta from the Puerto Ánoel radar.

Forecast for Carlotta
Carlotta is likely to continue to strengthen as it approaches the western coast of Mexico east of Acapulco. As a large portion of the hurricane’s circulation moves over the mountains of Mexico on Saturday morning, steady weakening should occur. Heavy rains from Carlotta will be the storm’s main threat, and these rains will steadily progress westwards along the coast, arriving at Acapulco by Saturday morning. With rainfall amounts of 6 – 10 inches possible along the track of Carlotta, the potential for dangerous flash flooding and mudslide will be a concern all along the coast affected by Carlotta.

The Atlantic is quiet
There are no threat areas to discuss in the Atlantic today. The GFS model is predicting that some of the moisture and energy from Carlotta could move into the Gulf of Mexico next week and form a tropical disturbance capable of becoming a tropical depression, but this solution is unlikely.

Jeff Masters

from:    http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/comment.html?entrynum=2121

El Hierro Update — 6/14

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El Hierro Volcano : Green and Yellow alert – 19 Earthquakes today, some of M 2.5+

Last update: June 14, 2012 at 2:54 pm by By

Update 14/06 – 13:00 UTC
– An increasing number of earthquakes, what is called an earthquake swarm, took place in the early hours this morning. Up to 19 earthquakes in less than 3 hours. Magnitudes have been high, with one reaching M 2.8. All  depths in between 19 and 26 km. According to IGN this is normal and part of the seismic process and not the eruption.
-Map done by AVCAN website with full list of earthquakes here:

Event Date Time Lat Lon Depth
(km)		 Mag Location
1148498 14/06/2012 04:00:02 27.7251 -17.9972 20 0.5 NW EL PINAR.IHI
1148500 14/06/2012 04:32:09 27.7622 -18.0380 22 1.5 W FRONTERA.IHI
1148507 14/06/2012 04:40:20 27.7481 -18.0339 20 2.3 W FRONTERA.IHI
1148514 14/06/2012 04:46:49 27.7432 -18.0379 23 1.4 SW FRONTERA.IHI
1148515 14/06/2012 04:52:39 27.7834 -18.0411 24 1.9 NW FRONTERA.IHI
1148530 14/06/2012 04:59:27 27.7873 -18.0422 21 1.3 NW FRONTERA.IHI
1148531 14/06/2012 05:00:00 27.7596 -18.0381 26 1.4 W FRONTERA.IHI
1148542 14/06/2012 05:14:10 27.7519 -18.0415 22 1.6 W FRONTERA.IHI
1148536 14/06/2012 05:15:10 27.7306 -18.0264 22 1.9 SW FRONTERA.IHI
1148544 14/06/2012 05:22:16 27.7896 -18.0447 20 1.7 NW FRONTERA.IHI
1148546 14/06/2012 05:27:00 27.7569 -18.0432 23 1.3 W FRONTERA.IHI
1148547 14/06/2012 05:34:31 27.8004 -18.0500 19 1.3 NW FRONTERA.IHI
1148549 14/06/2012 05:34:56 27.7735 -18.0356 21 1.5 NW FRONTERA.IHI
1148559 14/06/2012 05:41:04 27.7853 -18.0509 21 1.8 NW FRONTERA.IHI
1148561 14/06/2012 05:54:22 27.8062 -18.0488 20 1.8 NW FRONTERA.IHI
1148562 14/06/2012 06:01:52 27.7644 -18.0395 22 2.3 W FRONTERA.IHI
1148563 14/06/2012 06:05:07 27.7794 -18.0525 22 2.8 NW FRONTERA.IHI
1148565 14/06/2012 06:06:20 27.7726 -18.0591 23 2.7 NW FRONTERA.IHI
1148568 14/06/2012 07:48:40 27.8015 -18.0680 21 2.1 NW FRONTERA.IHI

 

Update 13/06 – 13:00 UTC
– 2 Earthquakes today after 5 days without any, making a total of 36 earthquakes registered by IGN since 1st June 2012.
– The strongest at 04:57 UTC with a Magnitude 1.8 and depth 25km. At 08:10 UTC a soft movement of Magnitude 0.3 and depth unknown. Both similar location, N Frontera.

Update 10/06 – 15:00 UTC
– Following the update containing the document from ULPGC, here is the video, showing the volcano at different depth, bubbles and fish swimming along. Recorded by the Qstar Crew of the Atlantic Explorer.

Update 09/06
– Joke Volta made a summary of events for the past week which can be download here. Also, here photographs from these days can be downloaded in this zip file here.

for more information and updates, go to:    http://earthquake-report.com/2011/09/25/el-hierro-canary-islands-spain-volcanic-risk-alert-increased-to-yellow/

Turkey/Syria Border — Earthquake

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Strong damaging earthquake hits Turkey near Sirnak and Syria border – 18 injured.

Last update: June 14, 2012 at 2:23 pm by By

The Kandilli Observatory seismology center said a magnitude 5.5 quake struck at a depth of 5.4 kilometers (3.3 miles) on Thursday morning at 8:52 am. ( 05:52 GMT)

At least 18 people have been injured by jumping out of windows and general panic in Silopi. Part of a minaret has also collapsed. This has been deemed CATDAT Orange.

The 18 people wounded in various parts by the panic caused by the earthquake have been discharged from hospital. Aftershocks continue to occur and people are waiting outside. People have been warned not to go back into their homes. The Silopi State Hospital patients due to the earthquake were administered aid in tents.

An initial damage assessment will be undertaken with some slight damage to houses.

Does not enter people’s homes are often warned of the Mayor’s announcement devices. Silopi State Hospital patients due to the earthquake, both installed to discharge into the tent.

Municipal teams had alerted all of the units with their own means creating a crisis desk. Municipality initiated a damage is detected.

 

 

Most important Earthquake Data:
Magnitude : 5.5Ml (KOERI), 5.3Mb (USGS)
UTC Time : 05:52:53 AM, Thursday, June 14th 2012
Local time at epicenter : 08:52:53 AM, Thursday, June 14th 2012
Depth (Hypocenter) : 5.4km, 9km
Geo-location(s) :

  1. 2km (1mi) ESE of Silopi, Turkey
  2. 20km (12mi) WNW of Zakhu, Iraq
  3. 28km (17mi) ESE of Cizre, Turkey
  4. 31km (19mi) S of Sirnak, Turkey

from:    http://earthquake-report.com/2012/06/14/strong-damaging-earthquake-hits-turkey-near-sirnak-and-syria-border/

 

Vertical Farming

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The Problem

By the year 2050, nearly 80% of the earth’s population will reside in urban centers. Applying the most conservative estimates to current demographic trends, the human population will increase by about 3 billion people during the interim. An estimated 109 hectares of new land (about 20% more land than is represented by the country of Brazil) will be needed to grow enough food to feed them, if traditional farming practices continue as they are practiced today. At present, throughout the world, over 80% of the land that is suitable for raising crops is in use (sources: FAO and NASA). Historically, some 15% of that has been laid waste by poor management practices. What can be done to avoid this impending disaster?

A Potential Solution: Farm Vertically

The concept of indoor farming is not new, since hothouse production of tomatoes, a wide variety of herbs, and other produce has been in vogue for some time. What is new is the urgent need to scale up this technology to accommodate another 3 billion people. An entirely new approach to indoor farming must be invented, employing cutting edge technologies. The Vertical Farm must be efficient (cheap to construct and safe to operate). Vertical farms, many stories high, will be situated in the heart of the world’s urban centers. If successfully implemented, they offer the promise of urban renewal, sustainable production of a safe and varied food supply (year-round crop production), and the eventual repair of ecosystems that have been sacrificed for horizontal farming.

It took humans 10,000 years to learn how to grow most of the crops we now take for granted. Along the way, we despoiled most of the land we worked, often turning verdant, natural ecozones into semi-arid deserts. Within that same time frame, we evolved into an urban species, in which 60% of the human population now lives vertically in cities. This means that, for the majority, we humans are protected against the elements, yet we subject our food-bearing plants to the rigors of the great outdoors and can do no more than hope for a good weather year. However, more often than not now, due to a rapidly changing climate regime, that is not what follows. Massive floods, protracted droughts, class 4-5 hurricanes, and severe monsoons take their toll each year, destroying millions of tons of valuable crops. Don’t our harvestable plants deserve the same level of comfort and protection that we now enjoy? The time is at hand for us to learn how to safely grow our food inside environmentally controlled multistory buildings within urban centers. If we do not, then in just another 50 years, the next 3 billion people will surely go hungry, and the world will become a much more unpleasant place in which to live.

 

     

 

Advantages of Vertical Farming

  • Year-round crop production; 1 indoor acre is equivalent to 4-6 outdoor acres or more, depending upon the crop (e.g., strawberries: 1 indoor acre = 30 outdoor acres)
  • No weather-related crop failures due to droughts, floods, pests
  • All VF food is grown organically: no herbicides, pesticides, or fertilizers
  • VF virtually eliminates agricultural runoff by recycling black water
  • VF returns farmland to nature, restoring ecosystem functions and services
  • VF greatly reduces the incidence of many infectious diseases that are acquired at the agricultural interface
  • VF converts black and gray water into potable water by collecting the water of
    evapotranspiration
  • VF adds energy back to the grid via methane generation from composting non-edible
    parts of plants and animals
  • VF dramatically reduces fossil fuel use (no tractors, plows, shipping.)
  • VF converts abandoned urban properties into food production centers
  • VF creates sustainable environments for urban centers
  • VF creates new employment opportunities
  • We cannot go to the moon, Mars, or beyond without first learning to farm indoors on
    earth
  • VF may prove to be useful for integrating into refugee camps
  • VF offers the promise of measurable economic improvement for tropical and subtropical
    LDCs. If this should prove to be the case, then VF may be a catalyst in helping to reduce or even reverse the population growth of LDCs as they adopt urban agriculture as a strategy for sustainable food production.
  • VF could reduce the incidence of armed conflict over natural resources, such as water
    and land for agriculture

from:    http://www.verticalfarm.com/more

 

Turkey – Earthquake 6/11

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Very strong earthquake along the Fethiye, Turkey coast creates panic among tourists and injures +50 people

Last update: June 11, 2012 at 1:18 pm by By

Earthquake overview :  A very strong dangerous earthquake occurred on June 10 at 15:44 local time along the Turkey and Greece Coast and scared hundred thousands of people in tourist destinations like Dalaman, Oludeniz and Fethiye. the earthquake was also well felt in many of the Greek Islands.

: As can be seen on the seismic hazard map below, today’s earthquake does not come as a surprise. The hardest hit locations like Fethiye, Oludeniz and Dalaman are very close to an important fault zone (as well as Rhodos in Greece). Powerful earthquakes may occur up to several tens of km distance from the fault line.

 

Seismic hazard map including the faulting zone

Update : Based on the many reports from earthquake-report.com readers, the highest intensity (shaking) values are reported from Calis, Oludeniz and Fethiye.

Update : Awaiting further news from the epicenter area and because the epicenter looks to be closer to the coast than initially expected, we have raised the Alert status of this earthquake to RED.

Update : A reader in Oludenir reports : Standing on the beach, heard buildings rattle, people shouting then vibration that lasted around 2 seconds. Very slight rock disturbance on mountain to south of beach.

Update : Many aftershocks have been noticed so far and will continue the following hours and days. Tourists will not be sleeping well tonight, locals are more used to earthquakes but are seldom confronted with heavy earthquakes like this one.

Update : USGS has increased his Magnitude to M 5.8, but – good news – the depth was decreased to 39 km (less dangerous). USGS puts his epicenter at only 24 km Oludinez.

Update : Electricity and Mobile communications have been lost in Fethiye. Our readers are reporting heavy shaking in Damalan and Fethiye.

Update : USGS reports a M5.7 Magnitude at a depth of 20 km. 275,000 people will (according to USGS) have felt a moderate shaking. If USGS is right in his expected intensity, earthquake-report.com believes this earthquake not to generate serious damage.
The epicenter of the earthquake is only 31 km SW Fethiye, Turkey (pop 60,437)
Luckily the epicenter is below the sea floor, but the impact will still be considerable in the Turkish cities of Fethiye and Dalaman. Both cities are also Tourist destinations.

Most important Earthquake Data:
Magnitude : Mw 5.8 to M6.0 depending on the reporting agency
UTC Time :  Sunday, June 10, 2012 at 12:44:17 UTC
Local time at epicenter : Sunday, June 10, 2012 at 03:44:17 PM at epicenter
Depth (Hypocenter) : 39.6 to 43 km depending on the reporting agency
Geo-location(s) :
Approx. 25 km from Oludeniz
31 km SW Fethiye (pop 60,437)
40 km from Dalaman
63 km (39 miles) E of Rodos, Dodecanese Islands, Greece

Update 11/06 – 13:16 UTC  :
– 64 people were treated in the hospitals for “jumping” injuries.
– A big rock avalanche in Fethiye was a major concern but had a happy end
– Some minor damage occurred near the epicenter area

Update : The Turkish authorities told the press that 57 people were counted as injured (52 from Fethiye and 5 from neighboring villages). They said NO tourists were among the wounded …

Update : Earthquake-report.com does thank the many ER readers who have shared their experience with the rest of Turkey, their homeland and the world. We truly appreciate it.

Update 23:55 UTC : At least 51 injured so far. All of the injured have been linked to jumping from balconies and windows. No collapsed houses but cracks have appeared in some walls. The shaking was said to last 1 minute.
As said earlier, Fethiye and Oludeniz are most hurt by this earthquake. More than 30 aftershocks have been reported.

7-8 citizens have been transferred to the hospital. They jumped off their balconies in fear. Apart from that, no damage has yet been reported.

Update 14:28 UTC : At least 15 aftershocks have been noticed so far. Turkish press talks about 7 injured people who are treated in hospitals. All of them have been jumping from their balconies! The Turkish specialized earthquake forces are currently making assessments of eventual damage, but we have no reports from them so far.

for more information and updates, go to:    http://earthquake-report.com/2012/06/11/very-strong-earthquake-along-the-fethiye-turkey-coast-creates-panic-among-tourists-and-injures-50-people/

Dangerous Earthquakes in Afghanistan

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Afghanistan – 2 strong earthquakes hit a populated area! 3+ fatalities + 70 feared dead after landslide

Last update: June 11, 2012 at 3:35 pm by By

On 6/11/2012 5:02:17 AM UTC (about 09:32h local time) an earthquake of magnitude 5.4 occurred in the highly populated region of Baghlan in Afghanistan. The earthquake happened 169km from Kabul.

27 minutes later, a stronger shallower earthquake has occurred. Most people would have been out of their house by the second quake, reducing casualty potential.

Most important Earthquake Data:
Magnitude : 1st- 5.4 Mb AND 2nd- 5.6 Mw
UTC Time : 05:02:17AM, Monday, June 11th, 2012 AND 05:29:14AM, Monday, June 11th, 2012
Local time at epicenter : 09:32:17AM, Monday, June 11th, 2012 AND 09:59:14AM, Monday, June 11th, 2012
Depth (Hypocenter) : 49km (USGS) AND 31km (USGS)
Geo-location(s) : The nearest populated places are: Yakhpaj (19km), Khoshkak (17km), Gavmordeh (8km), Wuch (14km), Daragi (14km), Pashakhana (6km), Godri (2km), Gozar-e Langar (19km), Nahrin (15km), Aqsay (20km), Saqaw (13km), Chashmeh-ye Rabat (16km), Gawmurda (16km), Larak (13km), Akakhel (20km). The closest civilian airport is Kunduz (77km).

IMPORTANT UPDATE 15:30 UTC :
– Rescuers have so far pulled two bodies of women from the rubble of the landslide in Baghlan province and expect many others were buried.
– Afghanistan officials said on Monday that some 70 people were trapped in rubble after mud houses collapsed from two strong earthquakes. Landslides typically cause many deaths from earthquakes.
– The U.N. confirmed one other death and said houses were destroyed across five districts.

IMPORTANT UPDATE 13:30 UTC :
– 3 people have been confirmed dead so far
– More than 20 houses have been buried in a landslide .
– some mud houses have been severely damaged
– Afghan SAR forces are searching the rubble to find corpses and even more survivors of the earthquake.
– Similar earthquakes in the past have also been devastating and caused a lot of fatalities
– 10 houses had been destroyed in Ishkamish district in neighbouring Takhar province. No news of injured or death from this area.

UPDATE: The earthquake has been felt III in Kabul, and III-IV in Bagram Airfield (about 120-130km from the earthquake epicenter)

UPDATE: We hope to get some confirmation from military forces in the area as to the effects of this earthquake.

UPDATE: 50 deaths and 150 injuries were seen from a 2002 earthquake occurring very close to the present epicenter with Mw5.8. Almost 1200 fatalities were also seen from the 25 March 2002 event.  (The number of fatalities in this earthquake was uncertain due to political situation in Afghanistan at the time of the earthquake. However, United Nations figures estimate approximately 1,200 fatalities in the Nahrin region with at least 100 deaths in the town of Nahrin itself. Another 7,000 people were injured and more than 20,000 were rendered homeless. Many of the injured were flown out by helicopter to the neighbouring towns of Baghlan and Pol-e Khomri.) – ASC-India.

UPDATE: The CATDAT Damaging Earthquakes Database has seen over16 damaging earthquakes within 100km of the epicenter since 1900. An earthquake in 1972 in Baghlan of Mw6.4, a destructive earthquake in north Afghanistan occurred. It destroyed approximately 7,000 houses, killing 450 and injuring 3,000 people in the Baghlan district. The shock caused serious damage and loss of life in the coal mines in the district. The earthquake was felt as far as Tashkent, Murgab and Tarbela, over an area of a radius of 520 km.

UPDATE: The earthquake was felt strongly in Baghlan Province. PAGER is indicating only a 35% chance of fatalities.

An earthquake of magnitude 5.6 occurred in the highly populated region of Baghlan in Afghanistan. The earthquake happened 173km from Kabol. The nearest populated places are: Gavmordeh (12km), Wuch (15km), Daragi (17km), Pashakhana (7km), Godri (5km), Gozar-e Langar (18km), Nahrin (17km), Safedreg (18km), Saqaw (13km), Chashmeh-ye Rabat (13km), Gawmurda (14km), Larak (10km), Akakhel (17km). The closest civilian airport is Kunduz (74km).

for more information and updates, go to:    http://earthquake-report.com/2012/06/11/afghanistan-strong-earthquake-hits-populated-area/