Global Rumblings: Very strong 6.4 but deep earthquake in northern Chile

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Very strong 6.4 but deep earthquake in northern Chile

Jun 20, 2011 (13 hours ago)

by Armand Vervaeck and James Daniell

UPDATE 17:38 UTC : The epicenter of the earthquake was only 15 km from the crater of the San Pedro volcano, one of the tallest active volcanoes in the world (6,145 m).

San Pedro volcano, near the epicenter - panoramio picture from Srwolfrang - http://www.panoramio.com/photo/29099084

UPDATE 17:34 UTC : Chile emergency service ONEMI has reported a max. intensity of VI MMI. these are the locations who will have a V to VI (moderate to strong shaking)
Región: Tarapacá : Alto Hospicio : VI, Camiña : IV, Huara : V, Iquique: VI, Pica : VI, Pozo Almonte : V
Región: Antofagasta : Calama: V, Quillagua: V, Tocopilla: V
ONEMI has also sais that there were NO reports of damage or injured so far.

UPDATE 17:32 UTC : A Chilean TV video which shows the shaking of the earthquake and people running out department stores and offices.

UPDATE 17:29 UTC : USGS has recalculated the earthquake data and modified them to :
Magnitude 6.5 @ a depth of 117 km

UPDATE 17:15 UTC : Max. expected shaking will be moderate = V MMI

Expected shaking map by USGS

UPDATE 17:10 UTC : This earthquake will be felt far outside Chile. Also people in Peru and Bolivia and even further will feel a weak shaking. Deep earthquakes have the advantage of mostly being harmless, but the radius can go as far as thousand km.

UPDATE 17:07 UTC : Other seismological agencies data :
EMSC : 6.1 @ 100 km
GFZ : 6.3 @ 97 km
Universidad de Chile : 6.4 @ 125 km

UPDATE 17:05 UTC : A just-in report for the theoretical damage prediction engine from WAPMERR confirms our earlier prediction that NOBODY will be killed or hurt.

UPDATE 17:02 UTC : Very strong earthquakes are not uncommon in this area of the world. They mostly occur with an hypocenter of more than 100 km making them harmless to some extend.

Around noon local time a very strong earthquake struck the northern Chile – Bolivia border area. Due to the depth, we beep at the moment an Orange (moderately dangerous alert level.
We are currently collecting more data.
Those people who have felt the earthquake are invited to report with the form below.

Most important Earthquake Data:
Magnitude : 6.3
UTC Time : Monday, June 20, 2011 at 16:35:57 UTC
Local time at epicenter : Monday, June 20, 2011 at 12:35:57 PM at epicenter
Depth (Hypocenter) : 111 km
Geo-location(s) :
87 km (54 miles) NE of Calama, Antofagasta, Chile

Links to important maps
USGS Did You Feel It Map
Google satellite map of the area showing the kind of terrain the earthquake took place
3-dimensional view of the earthquake area (USGS epicenter location)
USGS historic earthquakes map
USGS Seismic hazard map
USGS Impact on Population map
USGS Shaking map
LIVE SEISMOGRAM (nearest Seismograph station)
GDACS GREEN earthquake report

QuakeSOS+ and QuakeSOS free are iPhone applications developed by Armand Vervaeck, the founder of Earthquake Report. The Application simplifies immediate group communication to friends and family members (with your exact GPS location) and is feeding the users with Earthquake Report news.
The 0.99 US$ QuakeSOS+ version will support the activities of SOS Earthquakes.

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I did feel it – Ik heb het gevoeld – Το έκανα αισθάνεται – Yo lo siento – 我的确感到了 – 私はそれを感じていました- Ich habe es gefühlt – Bunu hissediyorum yaptı – لم أشعر أنه

Country and location

Tell us where in which location you felt the earthquake

E-mail (only if you wish)

Your Email address might help us if we request for additional details about your experience. This field is NOT mandatory. It is up to you to give it or not.

MMI 2-3 (Weak shaking)

Felt by many people indoors. Parked cars may rock slightly. Vibrations similar to the passing of a truck.

MMI 4 (Light shaking)

Dishes, windows, doors disturbed; walls make cracking sound. Sensation like heavy truck striking building

MMI 5 (Moderate shaking)

Felt by almost everyone; many awakened. Dishes, windows broken. Unstable objects overturned

MMI 6 (Strong shaking)

Felt by all, many frightened. Some heavy furniture moved; a few instances of fallen plaster. Damage slight

MMI 7 (Very strong shaking)

Slight to moderate damage in well-built houses; considerable damage in badly designed structures; some chimneys broken

MMI 8 (Severe shaking)

Damage great in poorly built houses. Fall of chimneys, columns, monuments, walls. Heavy furniture overturned

MMI 9 (Violent shaking)

Some modern buildings are damaged and many weak buildings are completely destroyed

Write your experience and/or additional text here : ?

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