Post 1 of 2…Multiple Quakes on one Day (2-21-11)!!

February 22, 2011

CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand (AP) – The earthquake that struck Christchurch has caused some 30 million tons of ice to break off from New Zealand’s biggest glacier. Tour guides at the Tasman Glacier in the Southern Alps say the quake caused the ice to “calve” from the glacier, forming icebergs in the terminal lake. Tourists of Glacier Explorer boats say the icefall caused waves of up to 3.5 meters in height which swept up and down the lake for 30 minutes.The glacier is about 120 miles (200 kilometers) from Christchurch on the west coast. –AP/Dynamic

February 22, 2011 – There is a dense band of seismic waves still registering in the  telemetry data on the world’s seismometers. We believe tectonic plates are still inordinately stressed by the series of disturbances which began 48 hours ago. It is our assessment that more quakes and unrest can be expected. Seismically stressed regions included the South Pacific and Kermandec and Tonga volcanic arc, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, the Philippines, South America, the Yucatan and Central America, Eastern China, and the Caribbean.

Posted on February 22, 2011

February 22, 2011 – COLOMBIA – An earthquake measuring 4.5 on the Richter scale hit Colombia early Monday, originating about ten miles outside of the town of Sipi in the northwest department of Choco, W Radio reported Monday. The seismic activity began about 42 miles below the earth’s surface. Colombia is almost continuously hit by tremors, with about five earthquakes of 2.5 magnitude occurring every day, according to the director of the Institute of Geology and Mining Marta Calvache. –Colombia Reports

6.3 quake strike South Island of New Zealand- RAW FEED – 1.23pm: Christchurch -NBR reporter Chris Hutching reports from the central  “The roads are running with water. It’s like rivers everywhere. Fill of grey liquifaction silt.  The shakes are happening every minutes. There are constant aftershocks.””When the first earthquake happened there was a bit of liquifaction on my front lawn. When I came home today water had erupted in seven places. It was gushing out of my front lawn like a river. My front lawn is covered in two feet of grey liquifaction silt. “My chimney survived the first quake. It’s buggered now. Most of it’s gone.” “All the power’s off.” People are being evacuated from the city centre, Mr Hutching said. Cracks have appeared in the ground a foot wide and eight feet deep. “People are distressed. People are running everywhere. Some of them are weeping. This is like something you could never imagine”. “The main access roads are still all full of water. “Cars are driving through like it’s a flood area. All of this water has been pushed out of the ground. It’s just incredible.” –NBR

A strong earthquake killed at least 65 people in New Zealand’s second-biggest city of Christchurch on Tuesday, with more casualties expected as rescuers worked into the night to find scores of people trapped inside collapsed buildings.

Posted on February 21, 2011

February 21, 2011 – ANGOLA, Luanda – At least 400 houses were destroyed on Saturday by high tide in Kilombo ward in Luanda island. Angop (AGENCIA ANGOLA PRESS) advised that waves which reached in excess of two metres ( 7 feet) were recorded in the region, and swept onto shores far beyond the norm, destroying over 400 homes. According to the spokesman of the National Civil Protection in Luanda the ‘rogue’ waves may have been caused by undersea tremors, though no evidence of that was recorded seismologically.  –Angencia Angola Press

Posted on February 21, 2011

February 21, 2011 – CHILE – Increased tectonic plate agitation has shown up as a dense band of waves across most of the world’s seismometers. It could be another major quake precusor. Of particular concern is the pressure exerted on the Nazca plate by this latest episode. The citizens of South America should stay alert for any potential seismic episode. This may be just a realignment or it could be a sign of mounting stress- so it’s no prediction. Ironically, Chile is off-line according to the USGS  but here are seismographs for Brazil (left) and Venezuela (right) below:

February 21, 2011 – EGYPT – An earthquake measuring 5.2 on the Richter scale shook up residents at the entrance to the Suez Canal early Monday morning. The National Institute for Astronomical and Geophysical Research reported that tremors from the 3 a.m. quake lasted for 27 minutes, but caused no damage.  –Israel National News

Posted on February 21, 2011

February 21, 2011 – ICELAND – The event that has rattled tectonic plates across the planet in the latest global seismic reading of the 22:00 -23:00 GMT event continues to result from the on-going divergent dynamism between the North American and Eurasian plate. Now we can see the violent force of this dynamism in play along the massive Mid Atlantic Ridge that runs through the country of Iceland. A massive swarm of at least 60 tremors have shaken the region mostly along the Reykjanes peninsula within the span of four hours.