EarthquakesMagnitude 7.7 Earthquake in the Caribbean Sea between Jamaica and Cuba
A powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck in the Caribbean Sea between Jamaica and Cuba on Tuesday. The earthquake prompted initial fears of a tsunami. Residents in multi-story building in Havana, Cuba, were advised to evacuate their buildings. In Jamaica, Belize, and Cayman Islands roads were cracked and sewage spilled from broken mains. No casualties were reported.
A powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck in the Caribbean Sea between Jamaica and Cuba on Tuesday, causing tremors from Mexico to Florida. However, there were no casualties were reported.
The quake’s epicenter was 73 miles northwest of Jamaica’s town of Lucea and just south of Cuba, and had a depth of ten kilometers, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The Jamaica Observer reports that the quake was felt across much of the island of Jamaica, lasting for several seconds.
Residents in Cuba’s capital Havana were evacuated out of buildings when the city was rattled by the quake, which was also felt in Guantanamo, Santiago de Cuba, and Cienfuegos.
It was not immediately clear whether the earthquake caused any damage or injuries. The International Tsunami Information Center (ITC) issued an initial warning, though this was later lifted.
“The tsunami threat has now largely passed,” the ITC said.
Meanwhile, the US Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said that based on all available data, waves reaching 0.3 to 1 meter above the tide level were possible for portions of Belize, Cuba, Honduras, Mexico, the Cayman Islands, and Jamaica.
The Cayman Islands recorded an aftershock of magnitude 6.5 as a result of the quake that left cracked roads and what appeared to be sewage spilling from damaged mains.
USGS scientists report that this earthquake confirms what is already known about this part of the world: large earthquakes can and do happen in the Caribbean region. The USGS says:
Given what we know about earthquake behavior, and given the distance between the magnitude 7.7 quake and the activity occurring in southwestern Puerto Rico, it is unlikely there is any relationship between these two seismic events. Typically, a M 6.4 event (the largest in the Puerto Rico sequence) will only influence activity within a few tens of kilometers or miles around itself. Nor do USGS earthquake experts expect the M7.7 earthquake to change the behavior of the earthquake sequence in Southwestern Puerto Rico. The distance between the earthquakes in southwestern Puerto Rico and today’s M 7.7 is approximately 1,250 kilometers or nearly 800 miles.
Five other earthquakes of M 6 or larger have occurred within 248 miles (400 km) of the January 28, 2020, event over the past half-century. They include a M 6.8 earthquake in December 2004, 174 miles (280 km) west of today’s earthquake, and a M 6.2 event in May 1992, almost 62 miles (100 km) east of today’s quake. None of these earthquakes are known to have resulted in shaking-related damage or fatalities, likely because of their location away from land and major population centers.
