PAGER - M 6.2 - SANTA CRUZ ISLANDS

Alert Version: 2Thursday, October 8th, 2009 at 21:16:12 UTCLocation: 12.9° S, 166.2° EDepth: 11kmEvent Id: US2009MMC6Created: 3 hours, 10 minutes after earthquake.
Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are vulnerable to earthquake shaking, though some resistant structures exist. A magnitude 6.9 earthquake 290 km South of this one struck Vanuatu on October 04, 2000 (UTC), with estimated population exposures of 30,000 at intensity VIII and 7,000 at intensity VII, with no reported fatalities. On April 21, 1997 (UTC), a magnitude 7.7 earthquake 73 km Northeast of this one struck Vanuatu, with estimated population exposures of 4,000 at intensity VII and 3,000 at intensity VI, with no reported fatalities.

Exposure Summary

Estimated Population Exposed to Earthquake Shaking

Est. Modified Mercalli IntensityEst. Population ExposurePerceived ShakingPotential Structure Damage
ResistantVulnerable
X0ExtremeV. HeavyV. Heavy
IX0ViolentHeavyV. Heavy
VIII0SevereModerate/HeavyHeavy
VII0Very StrongModerateModerate/Heavy
VI0StrongLightModerate
V1kModerateV. LightLight
IV96kLightnonenone
II-III--*Weaknonenone
I--*Not Feltnonenone
*Estimated exposure only includes population within calculated shake map area
Population Exposure
Population per ~1 sq. km. from LandScan
Population Exposure Map
Cities Exposed
MMICityPop.
IVSola1k
IIIPort-Olry2k
IIILuganville13k
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Shaking Intensity
Shake Map

PAGER results are generally available on the Internet within 30 minutes of the earthquake’s occurrence. However, information on the extent of shaking will be uncertain in the minutes and hours following and earthquake and typically improves as additional sensor data and reported intensities are acquired and incorporated into models of the earthquake's source. Users of PAGER estimates should account for uncertainty and always seek the most current PAGER release for any earthquake.