Three major earthquakes struck on Thursday, causing significant damage and loss of life in Venezuela.
On Thursday, three significant earthquakes occurred in California, Venezuela, and Japan, causing damage and casualties in Venezuela.
California
- Magnitude: 5.6
- Location: North coast of California (rural area)
- Time: Just after 8:00 am local time on Wednesday
- Depth: 21 km (initial quake)
- Notes: This is the strongest earthquake in the region since 1940. Three aftershocks under magnitude 2.7 occurred within an hour. The tremor caused items to fall from shelves in a local market.
The California quake was the strongest in the region since 1940.
Venezuela
- Magnitude: 7.5 (largest of the three)
- Location: North coast of Venezuela, near Moron (Caribbean coast)
- Time: Just after 6:00 pm local time on Wednesday
- Depth: 10 km (second quake)
- Casualties: Dozens reported dead
- Impact: Buildings collapsed in Caracas (about 170 km from epicenter). Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello described the situation as “alarming” and urged people to stay outside. Hazardous tsunami waves were possible within 300 km of epicenter, including Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands. Major refineries are located 28 km northwest of epicenter.
"The situation is alarming," said Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, urging residents to stay outside as buildings collapsed in Caracas.
Japan
- Magnitude: 6.9
- Location: Off coast of Iwate (northern Japan)
- Time: About 7:30 am local time on Thursday
- Depth: 51 km
- Impact: Mild shaking felt in Tokyo. Tsunami warnings were later cancelled. The Tohoku Shinkansen bullet train line halted operations. No immediate reports of injuries or damage.
Attribution: Information sourced from US Geological Survey (USGS), US Tsunami Warning Centre, Japan Safe Travel, and news agencies CNN, NBC, AP, and 7NEWS.