2009 Swan Islands earthquake

Earthquake affecting Central America 2009 Swan Islands earthquake 2009-05-28 08:24:46 usp000gxkj 12867661 Central America 2009 5 28 02:24 7.3 w yes 10 km mi 2 16.73 -86.22 region:HN_type:event inline,title Swan Islands Transform Fault Strike-slip Honduras Guatemala Belize VII 4 m (13 ft) 7 killed, 40 injured The 2009 Swan Islands earthquake occurred on May 28 at 02:24:45 AM local time 08:24:45 UTC with a moment magnitude of 7.3 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII (Very strong). The epicenter was located in the Caribbean Sea, 64 km northeast of the island of Roatán, 19 miles northeast of Port Royal, Isla de Bahias, 15 miles northwest of Isla Barbaretta, and 130 km north-northeast of La Ceiba.https://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/eqinthenews/2009/us2009heak/ Magnitude 7.3 – OFFSHORE HONDURAS United States Geological Survey 28 May 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20090531053611/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/eqinthenews/2009/us2009heak/ 31 May 2009 dead Three aftershocks followed the earthquake within magnitude 4 range. 7.3-Magnitude Quake off the Honduras Coast : Natural Hazards http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/view.php?id=38792 NASA Earth Observatory 2009-05-28 2016-02-09 Earthquake The earthquake occurred at a depth of around 10 km on a transform fault zone known as the Swan Islands Transform Fault on the southern margin of the Cayman Trough. It was a result of left-lateral strike-slip faulting. The Swan Island Transform Fault forms part of the tectonic boundary between the North American plate and the Caribbean plate, and continues onshore as the Motagua Fault and the Chixoy-Polochic Fault. The 30-second offshore quake was felt in Guatemala, El Salvador, Belize, and as far as Cancún in Mexico. It was also felt in parts of Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Cuba, Jamaica, and the Cayman Islands.http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2009/may/28/71-earthquake-topples-homes-kills-6-honduras/221335/ Miami Herald 7.1 earthquake topples homes, kills 6 in Honduras Cuevas, Freddy 2009-05-30 2009-05-28 2016-01-28 https://web.archive.org/web/20160128051345/http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2009/may/28/71-earthquake-topples-homes-kills-6-honduras/221335/ dead Analysis of geodetic and seismic data indicated that up to 1 meter of slip occurred across a 250-km-long fault rupture. Although the epicenter was located far off the coast of Central America, the long rupture contributed to severe damage in Honduras. The earthquake ruptured a segment of plate boundary immediately east of the 1976 earthquake rupture on the Motagua Fault.Shannon E. Graham Charles DeMets Heather R. DeShon Robert Rogers Manuel Rodriguez Maradiaga Wilfried Strauch Klaus Wiese Douglas Hernandez GPS and seismic constraints on the M = 7.3 2009 Swan Islands earthquake: implications for stress changes along the Motagua fault and other nearby faults Geophysical Journal International 2012 190 3 1625–1639 10.1111/j.1365-246X.2012.05560.x 2012GeoJI.190.1625G free Tsunami A tsunami was observed with heights of 4 m ft on in Motagua River, Guatemala.Tsunami Event: SWAN ISLANDS, HONDURAS https://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/hazel/view/hazards/tsunami/event-more-info/4356 NGDC Damage thumb|left|The damaged Democracy Bridge in El Progreso The earthquake caused at least seven fatalities, 40 injuries, and more than 130 collapsed or damaged buildings across northern Honduras. Two important bridges and a number of levees and port terminals were also seriously damaged.Belarbi, A., Luna, R., Applegate, K., Calderon, H., Rivera, O., Lopez, L.A. and Rodriguez, R., 2009. The M7.3 Honduras Earthquake of May 28, 2009, EERI Special Earthquake Report, 1–4 In the Guatemalan department of Izabal, 35 buildings were destroyed and 80 were damaged. In Belize, at least 5 buildings were also destroyed and 25 were damaged. In Roatan, one home was damaged and one injury occurred.http://www.latribuna.hn/news/44/ARTICLE/65320/2009-05-29.html Seísmo destruyó 35 viviendas y dañó otras 80 en el Caribe guatemalteco La Tribuna 2009-05-29 September 2010 H3llBot yes The earthquake caused an estimated $37 million worth of damage, and electricity, Internet and telephone connections were cut throughout the majority of Honduras. 7.1 Earthquake Hits Honduras, Belize http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/28/71-earthquake-hits-hondur_n_208491.html Huffington Post 2016-02-15 A tsunami watch was put into effect by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center for Honduras, Guatemala, and Belize and was discontinued 90 minutes after the earthquake occurred.https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8071568.stm Major quake strikes off Honduras 2009-05-28 2010-01-01 BBC News https://web.archive.org/web/20100123053648/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8071568.stm 23 January 2010 live See also List of earthquakes in 2009 2018 Swan Islands earthquake References Further reading 10.1111/j.1365-246X.2012.05560.x GPS and seismic constraints on the M = 7.3 2009 Swan Islands earthquake: Implications for stress changes along the Motagua fault and other nearby faults Geophysical Journal International 190 3 1625–1639 2012 Graham S. E. Demets C. Deshon H. R. Rogers R. Maradiaga M. Rodriguez Strauch W. Wiese K. Hernandez D. 2012GeoJI.190.1625G free External links Major 7.3 magnitude earthquake hits Honduras The Magnitude 7.3 Honduras Earthquake May 28, 2009 – ExploringEarth https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqarchives/poster/2009/20090528.php Poster of the Honduras Earthquake of 28 May 2009 – Magnitude 7.3 United States Geological Survey 2016-02-29 https://web.archive.org/web/20160305172650/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqarchives/poster/2009/20090528.php 5 March 2016 dead 12867661 Category:Earthquakes in Central America Category:Natural disasters in Belize Category:Earthquakes in Honduras Honduras Earthquake Earthquake Earthquake Category:May 2009 in North America Category:2009 tsunamis