Posted by Nel
Two large earthquakes were recorded near Solomon Islands, Monday, January 4. The first one was felt at 8:48 AM local time with a magnitude of 6.5. Another one followed, this time stronger, with a 7.2 magnitude recording at 9:36 AM. The epicenters of the earthquakes were at 64 miles and 53 miles southeast of Gizo.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii issued only local tsunami warning that can be destructive along coasts located within a few hundred kilometers of the earthquake epicenter.
Meanwhile, the Philippines, was hit by a moderate 5.3 magnitude earthquake at 5:38 AM local time on the same day, the US Geological Survey said. It was centered at 102 kms southeast of Davao City, in the southern Philippines island of Mindanao. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue any tsunami warning.
The Philippines and the Solomon Islands are in an area called Pacific Ring of Fire where continental plates meet causing frequent seismic and volcanic activities. In fact, one of the Philippine volcanoes, Mayon, has been showing signs of imminent eruptions for the past few weeks. The warning, however, was lowered to level 3 when 2010 ushered in.
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Source:http://dailycontributor.com/earthquakes-hit-solomon-islands-and-the-philippines/10197/
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