6.7 magnitude quake shakes Hawaii
{{date|October 15, 2006}}
[[Image:Hawaii 15 October 2006 earthquakes.gif|300px|right|thumb|USGS Earthquake Map]]
A [[w:Richter magnitude scale|magnitude]] 6.7 earthquake shook the [[w:Hawaii|Hawaiian]] islands at 17:07:49 UTC (07:07:49 local time) October 15, 2006. The quake, centered approximately 6 miles southwest of [[w:Puako|Puakō]] on the west side of Hawai`i Island (the Big Island), was felt throughout the entire state, causing a statewide power outage.

No [[w:tsunami|tsunami]] warning was issued as a result of the quake; however, a tsunami measuring around 0.1 meters (four inches) was recorded. There were 50 aftershocks reported after the quake, the strongest being a 5.8 tremor reported at about 17:14 UTC (7:14 a.m. local time).

There were no fatalities reported and only scattered reports of minor injuries.

Electric power was lost statewide shortly after the quake.  As of about 8:00 p.m. HST, power was restored to all the neighbor islands, but Hawaiian Electric personnel still had work to go on Oahu, the island with the highest population.  Power was eventually restored to most areas of Oahu by midnight.  

Structural damage occurred at Kona Hospital, where ceiling tiles fell and electricity was lost, forcing an evacuation of patients to Hilo Medical Center on the other side of the island.  Damage was also reported at the Honokaa Long-term Care Facility and the Royal Kona Resort. 

Hawaii Governor [[w:Linda Lingle|Linda Lingle]], who was in Kona at the time of the earthquake, issued an emergency declaration for the entire state of Hawaii at about 11:00 a.m. local time (2300 UTC Sunday).

Air service in Hawaii was temporarily suspended shortly after the quake as airports were forced to operate on emergency power.  The power outage caused delays to incoming and outgoing flights, as TSA agents had to conduct manual searches of all bags.  Airlines have canceled numerous flights scheduled to depart [[w:Honolulu International Airport|Honolulu International Airport]] Sunday evening. 

Communication links are problematic.  Most radio stations lost power and stopped broadcasting immediately after the quake. (Metroblogging Hawaii) Honolulu radio station KSSK, operating on emergency generators, became a central information source for Oahu residents. A landslide has blocked at least one major highway from a section of a cliff at Kealakekua Bay.

[[w:USGS|USGS]] Volcano Observatory equipment has not been significantly damaged. Monitoring stations report "no significant changes in the past 24 hours" of the eruption of the Kīlauea volcano. 

According to USGS records, this earthquake is the fourth largest Hawaiian earthquake in the last 100 years. Previous earthquakes include a magnitude 7.2 quake in 1975, a magnitude 6.9 quake in 1951, and a magnitude 6.8 quake in 1938.  The last magnitude 6.7 quake was in 1983.

{{haveyoursay}}
==Sources==
{{wikipediapar|2006 Hawaii earthquake}}
*{{source|url=http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/ustwbh.php
|title=Magnitude 6.7 - ISLAND OF HAWAII, HAWAII
|author=
|pub=USGS
|date=October 15, 2006}}

*{{source|url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/10/15/hawaii.quake/index.html
|title=Strong earthquake rattles Hawaii
|author=
|pub=CNN
|date=October 15, 2006}}

*{{source|url=http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/nation/4260703.html
|title=Magnitude 6.5 earthquake strikes Hawaii
|author=GREG SMALL, AP
|pub=Houston Chronicle
|date=October 15, 2006}}

*{{source|url=http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=domesticNews&storyID=2006-10-15T200011Z_01_N15289287_RTRUKOC_0_US-QUAKE-HAWAII.xml&WTmodLoc=USNewsHome_C1_%5BFeed%5D-2
|title=Strong quake rattles Hawaii, no tsunami warning
|author=
|pub=Reuters
|date=October 15, 2006}}

*{{source|url=http://volcano.wr.usgs.gov/hvostatus.php
|title=Kilauea Daily Update issued Oct 15, 2006 09:41 HST - Alert Level WATCH - Aviation Color Code ORANGE
|author=Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
|pub=USGS
|date=October 15, 2006}}

*{{source|url=http://hawaii.metblogs.com/archives/2006/10/decent_shake.phtml
|title=DECENT SHAKE
|author=Wil Kyle 
|pub=Metroblogging Hawaii
|date=October 15, 2006}}

*{{source|url=http://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/states/historical_state_mag.php#hawaii
|title=Historic United States Earthquakes
|author=Earthquake Hazards Program
|pub=USGS
|date=May 10, 2006}}

== External links ==
Copyrighted [[w:Flickr|Flickr]] images:
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/89453636@N00/270663701/ Displaced Boulder] near Kaloko Road
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/samafifi/270616817/ Rock Debris] along a Palani Road
* [http://flickr.com/photos/dn/270655106/ Cliff] at Kealakekua Bay before the quake
* [http://flickr.com/photos/konaboy/270510964/ Section of the Kealakekua cliff] sliding into the ocean
* [http://www.flickr.com/groups/97015512@N00/pool/ Hawaii Earthquake 2006] Pool

{{publish}}
{{Archived}}
[[Category:Earthquakes]]
[[Category:Hawaii]]
[[Category:Disasters and accidents]]
[[Category:Honolulu, Hawaii]]
[[Category:Kīlauea]]

[[de:Schwere Erdbeben auf Hawaii]]
[[ja:ハワイ島近海でM6.6の地震]]
USGS Earthquake Map
A magnitude 6.7 earthquake shook the Hawaiian islands at 17:07:49 UTC (07:07:49 local time) October 15, 2006. The quake, centered approximately 6 miles southwest of Puakō on the west side of Hawai`i Island (the Big Island), was felt throughout the entire state, causing a statewide power outage.

No tsunami warning was issued as a result of the quake; however, a tsunami measuring around 0.1 meters (four inches) was recorded. There were 50 aftershocks reported after the quake, the strongest being a 5.8 tremor reported at about 17:14 UTC (7:14 a.m. local time).

There were no fatalities reported and only scattered reports of minor injuries.

Electric power was lost statewide shortly after the quake.  As of about 8:00 p.m. HST, power was restored to all the neighbor islands, but Hawaiian Electric personnel still had work to go on Oahu, the island with the highest population.  Power was eventually restored to most areas of Oahu by midnight.  

Structural damage occurred at Kona Hospital, where ceiling tiles fell and electricity was lost, forcing an evacuation of patients to Hilo Medical Center on the other side of the island.  Damage was also reported at the Honokaa Long-term Care Facility and the Royal Kona Resort. 

Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle, who was in Kona at the time of the earthquake, issued an emergency declaration for the entire state of Hawaii at about 11:00 a.m. local time (2300 UTC Sunday).

Air service in Hawaii was temporarily suspended shortly after the quake as airports were forced to operate on emergency power.  The power outage caused delays to incoming and outgoing flights, as TSA agents had to conduct manual searches of all bags.  Airlines have canceled numerous flights scheduled to depart Honolulu International Airport Sunday evening. 

Communication links are problematic.  Most radio stations lost power and stopped broadcasting immediately after the quake. (Metroblogging Hawaii) Honolulu radio station KSSK, operating on emergency generators, became a central information source for Oahu residents. A landslide has blocked at least one major highway from a section of a cliff at Kealakekua Bay.

USGS Volcano Observatory equipment has not been significantly damaged. Monitoring stations report "no significant changes in the past 24 hours" of the eruption of the Kīlauea volcano. 

According to USGS records, this earthquake is the fourth largest Hawaiian earthquake in the last 100 years. Previous earthquakes include a magnitude 7.2 quake in 1975, a magnitude 6.9 quake in 1951, and a magnitude 6.8 quake in 1938.  The last magnitude 6.7 quake was in 1983.


*

*

*

*

*

*
Earthquakes Hawaii Disasters and accidents Honolulu, Hawaii Kīlauea