Western Caribbean spared after massive 7.6 quake triggers brief tsunami alert
/ Our Today
administrator
Tsunami advisories issued for sections of the western Caribbean coast briefly triggered concern but were later discontinued after a massive 7.6 submarine earthquake struck the region on Saturday (February 8).
The moderate tremor was recorded 209 kilometres south-southwest of George Town around 6: 25 pm Jamaica time.
Striking near the boundary separating the North American and Caribbean plates, the quake had a focal depth of 10 kilometres, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
Within moments after the initial temblor, tsunami threat alerts sprang up across the western Caribbean, as potential impacts were highlighted for Honduras, Nicaragua, Haiti, Panama, Cuba, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Dominican Republic, The Bahamas, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands and Turks & Caicos Islands.
The threat was lifted shortly afterwards for much of the region, as the US Tsunami Warning System concluded a major event was no longer anticipated.
Tsunami Info Stmt 2: M7.6 Caribbean Sea 1823EST Feb 8: Tsunami NOT expected; U.S. Atlantic or Gulf Coast
— NWS Tsunami Alerts (@NWS_NTWC) February 8, 2025
Wave heights cresting up to three metres in Cuba and one metre in the Cayman Islands remained in effect as at 7:28 pm, per the advisory.
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