Last night around 11pm local time we were just dozing off to sleep when we felt a rumbling that lasted about 5 seconds. An earthquake! And quite close! That sure woke us up!
We are on a mooring in about 40' of water, so it was interesting that we actually heard and felt the earthquake. It was a little different than the ones we felt aboard in Guatemala--where it actually moved the boat enough to shake the rigging. This time it just felt like rumbling, no big shaking.
Within minutes, the local VHF net was buzzing with people asking what had happened and if there was a tsunami coming. One lady was worried about her kids who were spending Saturday night at someone else's house on another island. Primrose (a local Tongan) asked "which way is the Tsunami coming from"?
Unfortunately, Baker, the local expat who normally would be on top of stuff like this was out of commission--his internet has been down for a few days. But Mike from the Aquarium came on from home via hand-held. His internet was working, and was able to look up the info on the internet.
The quake (according the Hawaii earthquake site) was centered about 31 miles SW of Neiafu, but located 72 miles (miles!!??) deep in the ocean. Since it was so close, we knew that whatever would happen, tsunami-wise, would happen within minutes. (A statistic given out on the radio during the discussion was that the waves travel around 600 MPH, so it would have hit us within 3-4 minutes).
Someone who was standing on a beach at an island on the SW side of Neiafu reported they saw nothing unusual going on with the water (no rapid receding of the water, which normally precedes any incoming waves).
We all stayed awake and worried for a little while. But fortunately, no tsunami was generated. There were also no reports of any significant damage around here from the quake itself, on this morning's VHF net.
So we dodged another natural disaster, here in exciting Tonga!!
Showing posts with label Tsunami. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tsunami. Show all posts
Monday, April 30, 2012
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Tsunami Wrap-Up - Marina Damage in Hawaii
This link probably won't permanently take you to the pictures, since this link is usually for the monthly seminar announcement for Hawaii Cruising Society (affiliated with Hawaii Yacht Club). But for now, it is a collection of photos taken by members of the damage at local marinas.
http://hyccruisingsociety.com/Seminar.html
Of course, here in Pearl Harbor, we had no damage whatsoever.
http://hyccruisingsociety.com/Seminar.html
Of course, here in Pearl Harbor, we had no damage whatsoever.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Quake Shifted Japan 13 Feet!!
Quoting from another blog:
See the rest of the article "How the Quake Shifted Japan" on MSNBC
This week's earthquake caused the main island of Japan to shift as much as 13 feet to the east, seismologists say. That may sound like a shocker, but it's just one of the natural changes that come along with an 8.9-magnitude temblor — like the 1.6-microsecond speed-up of Earth's daily rotation and the 4-inch shift in Earth's axis.
See the rest of the article "How the Quake Shifted Japan" on MSNBC
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Tsunami Update T+12hr
We have gotten calls and emails and some links and pictures from our other friends...
The water is still surging in the harbors, and the boats that are outside the harbors waiting for the go-ahead to go back to their slips are still waiting.
Gary, our single-handing friend from s/v Sea Flyer off the Big Island, sent us this a couple of hours ago:
Another friend just came back from the North Shore of Oahu and said he could still see the water surging in and out at Haleiwa Harbor.
We are, of course, watching the news reports from Japan and our hearts go out to those people and everyone around the Pacific Rim today.
The water is still surging in the harbors, and the boats that are outside the harbors waiting for the go-ahead to go back to their slips are still waiting.
Gary, our single-handing friend from s/v Sea Flyer off the Big Island, sent us this a couple of hours ago:
The Harbor is still closed due to the currents in there. One boat tried to go in but they turned around and came back out after hitting a light post and knocking it down on the walkway.
I may spend another night out here. It was a rough night last night, but not from the Tsunami. I didn't feel it go by out here--just fair size swells and no wind to sail.
I am sailing nice now. May be able to get some sleep when I get past all the other boats out here.
Have reports of damage in Kona and all along this coast. At least one house floated away.
Another friend just came back from the North Shore of Oahu and said he could still see the water surging in and out at Haleiwa Harbor.
We are, of course, watching the news reports from Japan and our hearts go out to those people and everyone around the Pacific Rim today.
Tsunami Update T+6hr
We are still fine, though we're still hearing inputs from our friends around the islands...
s/v Infini and the others that were at Hawaii Yacht Club got underway about 11pm last night, and as of an hour ago, were still being kept outside the harbor. All the boats were still milling around outside the harbor, with the Coast Guard standing guard and keeping boats from going back in. We have not heard how the docks and facilities in the Ala Wai Basin (including HYC) fared.
Our friends Rob and Claudia, on s/v Sea Host at Keehi Lagoon had a minor disaster--they had left their boat and evacuated to high ground, and on return, found that their entire dock had broken loose, and the boats and dock all rafted together were surging back and forth in the lagoon. They just called us to say that they managed to get a ride out to the 'raft', and free their boat. They are now trying to figure out where to go. Claudia said the surge is still incredible in the lagoon, and it's not safe to try to go outside. They are going to try to find a temporary tie up, and figure out where to go next.
We have a friend living on the water on the North Shore of Oahu, about 6 feet above sea level. He called an hour ago and said he was evacuated, and only just got back around 8:30am. He said his yard was full of debris and his fence and gate was smashed, but his house is OK, and no water got inside.
We have another friend on a boat in the Kona area on the Big Island. We haven't heard from him yet. And we haven't heard from Cahoots on Maui.
s/v Infini and the others that were at Hawaii Yacht Club got underway about 11pm last night, and as of an hour ago, were still being kept outside the harbor. All the boats were still milling around outside the harbor, with the Coast Guard standing guard and keeping boats from going back in. We have not heard how the docks and facilities in the Ala Wai Basin (including HYC) fared.
Our friends Rob and Claudia, on s/v Sea Host at Keehi Lagoon had a minor disaster--they had left their boat and evacuated to high ground, and on return, found that their entire dock had broken loose, and the boats and dock all rafted together were surging back and forth in the lagoon. They just called us to say that they managed to get a ride out to the 'raft', and free their boat. They are now trying to figure out where to go. Claudia said the surge is still incredible in the lagoon, and it's not safe to try to go outside. They are going to try to find a temporary tie up, and figure out where to go next.
We have a friend living on the water on the North Shore of Oahu, about 6 feet above sea level. He called an hour ago and said he was evacuated, and only just got back around 8:30am. He said his yard was full of debris and his fence and gate was smashed, but his house is OK, and no water got inside.
We have another friend on a boat in the Kona area on the Big Island. We haven't heard from him yet. And we haven't heard from Cahoots on Maui.
Tsunami Update T+3.5hr
I think the tsunami is over in Pearl Harbor. We really never experienced any wave action that I could feel down below.
Reports of waves "swamping the beaches" in Honolulu seem a little exaggerated, from what I saw as the first few waves reached us. Though I didn't watch the TV reports through the whole morning.
It seems that Maui got higher waves. Hope our cruising friends on s/v Cahoots hanging out in Maui are OK.
We haven't heard back from our friends on s/v Infini and s/v Before (and several others) that were docked at the Hawaii Yacht Club Aloha Dock. I am sure they got underway and spent the night in the ocean off Honolulu, milling around in deep water with several hundred other boats...their biggest risk not the tsunami but collision with another boat!
Reports of waves "swamping the beaches" in Honolulu seem a little exaggerated, from what I saw as the first few waves reached us. Though I didn't watch the TV reports through the whole morning.
It seems that Maui got higher waves. Hope our cruising friends on s/v Cahoots hanging out in Maui are OK.
We haven't heard back from our friends on s/v Infini and s/v Before (and several others) that were docked at the Hawaii Yacht Club Aloha Dock. I am sure they got underway and spent the night in the ocean off Honolulu, milling around in deep water with several hundred other boats...their biggest risk not the tsunami but collision with another boat!
Friday, March 11, 2011
Tsunami Update T+1hr
We are watching the local news, but it's only 4am out and still dark, and everyone's having a hard time watching what's going on. We are staring at grainy yellowish videos, and the TV reporters are trying really hard to make it exciting.
Having experienced the slow sloshing of the ocean after the last big tsunami, when we were in the Galapagos, I can understand what the reporters are talking about. But it's hard to get excited about 1' waves.
We feel more movement on Soggy Paws when the Admiral's Barge goes past.
Dave went back to bed already. I'm soon to follow. It's 4:15 am here, and I've yet to get any sleep.
They have cancelled school for today and closed non-essential government offices. I'm sure no one in Hawaii got much sleep last night.
Thanks for all the good thoughts from our friends all over.
Having experienced the slow sloshing of the ocean after the last big tsunami, when we were in the Galapagos, I can understand what the reporters are talking about. But it's hard to get excited about 1' waves.
We feel more movement on Soggy Paws when the Admiral's Barge goes past.
Dave went back to bed already. I'm soon to follow. It's 4:15 am here, and I've yet to get any sleep.
They have cancelled school for today and closed non-essential government offices. I'm sure no one in Hawaii got much sleep last night.
Thanks for all the good thoughts from our friends all over.
Not Another Tsunami!
We were fortunately watching TV this evening when the reports started coming in about the huge earthquake in Japan.
So we have spent the evening (and now late into the night) monitoring the situation. We have the computer checking 4-5 tsunami-related websites, the TV is on, the VHF is scanning all the local channels, and our cell phones are nearby.
The warning sirens have been going off for a couple of hours, so I'm sure everyone on Oahu knows of the Tsunami Warning status. The ETA of the first wave at Kauai, the island to the west of us, is about 3am. We will then supposedly have 15 minutes or so before it gets to Oahu.
Our friends on Infini called us a couple of hours ago and said they were going to get underway. The Ala Wai basin where they are is pretty exposed. Our friends on Sea Host, in Keehi Lagoon, called to say that their plan is to leave their boat and head for the hills.
We have the navigation computer up with the AIS receiver on, and we can see many of the commercial vessels in the commercial harbor about 5 miles away, getting underway. We can hear 5-6 Coast Guard vessels underway and talking with each other off-channel. The Coast Guard has been on the air on Ch 16 broadcasting the warning several times. And also saying that the Port of Honolulu is closed to all incoming vessels.
So far, we haven't seen any movement of military vessels within Pearl Harbor.
In an internet search of 'tsunami Pearl Harbor', we found a 40-page study done in 2006 assessing the tsunami risk within Pearl Harbor--specifically for the north side of Ford Island, where NOAA is building their new facility for the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. This study studied actual data from 6 of the worst tsunami events in recorded history around the Pacific Basin, and modeled some 'worst case' hypothetical earthquakes. All the results show that Pearl Harbor is pretty safe, and where we are is just about the safest place within Pearl Harbor.
We are in a deep water area, way up inside Pearl Harbor. The other residents of the docks (some who have lived aboard for 15+ years) seem unfazed. They said that last year, they were forced to evacuate the boats when the big tsunami from Chile was on the way. They all just went up the hill just beyond the parking lot, and hung out there for a couple of hours.
We have prepped a 'grab bag' if we decide at the last minute to just evacuate the boat. And we have prepped the boat, in case we decide that getting underway is the best course of action. For now, we are just watching and waiting.
After watching the AIS for a bit, with all those boats out off the harbor milling around in the dark... we are probably safer here than anywhere else.
It's 1am right now. Dave is (predictably) napping, and I am (predictably) up worrying for the both of us. I have instructions to call him at 2am so we can make a decision as to the best course of action.
So we have spent the evening (and now late into the night) monitoring the situation. We have the computer checking 4-5 tsunami-related websites, the TV is on, the VHF is scanning all the local channels, and our cell phones are nearby.
The warning sirens have been going off for a couple of hours, so I'm sure everyone on Oahu knows of the Tsunami Warning status. The ETA of the first wave at Kauai, the island to the west of us, is about 3am. We will then supposedly have 15 minutes or so before it gets to Oahu.
Our friends on Infini called us a couple of hours ago and said they were going to get underway. The Ala Wai basin where they are is pretty exposed. Our friends on Sea Host, in Keehi Lagoon, called to say that their plan is to leave their boat and head for the hills.
We have the navigation computer up with the AIS receiver on, and we can see many of the commercial vessels in the commercial harbor about 5 miles away, getting underway. We can hear 5-6 Coast Guard vessels underway and talking with each other off-channel. The Coast Guard has been on the air on Ch 16 broadcasting the warning several times. And also saying that the Port of Honolulu is closed to all incoming vessels.
So far, we haven't seen any movement of military vessels within Pearl Harbor.
In an internet search of 'tsunami Pearl Harbor', we found a 40-page study done in 2006 assessing the tsunami risk within Pearl Harbor--specifically for the north side of Ford Island, where NOAA is building their new facility for the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. This study studied actual data from 6 of the worst tsunami events in recorded history around the Pacific Basin, and modeled some 'worst case' hypothetical earthquakes. All the results show that Pearl Harbor is pretty safe, and where we are is just about the safest place within Pearl Harbor.
We are in a deep water area, way up inside Pearl Harbor. The other residents of the docks (some who have lived aboard for 15+ years) seem unfazed. They said that last year, they were forced to evacuate the boats when the big tsunami from Chile was on the way. They all just went up the hill just beyond the parking lot, and hung out there for a couple of hours.
We have prepped a 'grab bag' if we decide at the last minute to just evacuate the boat. And we have prepped the boat, in case we decide that getting underway is the best course of action. For now, we are just watching and waiting.
After watching the AIS for a bit, with all those boats out off the harbor milling around in the dark... we are probably safer here than anywhere else.
It's 1am right now. Dave is (predictably) napping, and I am (predictably) up worrying for the both of us. I have instructions to call him at 2am so we can make a decision as to the best course of action.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Cleared in to Easter Island
When we arrived at Hanga Roa (the town on Easter Island), we called 'Pascua Radio' and reported in. They told us to expect officials to come out to the boat at 3pm.
It was a nice group, very courteous and very professional. The agricultural inspector confiscated my remaining onions and garlic from the hanging basket in the galley. On another boat they confiscated their Panamanian honey. Chile is very protective of their agriculture, and each of these items is a possible threat to their industry.
Once cleared in, we went ashore to meet up with Mike and Sue from s/v Infini. They gave us the 'nickel tour' of town, and we went promptly to the internet cafe. I only had 250 emails waiting for me!!
We celebrated our arrival at Easter Island on Infini with a bottle of champagne.
It turned into an all-anchorage party when the boat next door rowed by.
Andy and Reanna sailed in their smallish sailboat from Chile via Juan Fernandez (an island partway between mainland Chile and Easter Island). They were there when the tsunami hit, and barely got away with their boat intact. It happened at night and apparently the wave went very high into the town. They said there were people, houses, and cows floating by screaming in the dark. They picked up everyone they could, and then donated their dinghy and small outboard motor so the people could get back to their island. Andy did not want to take his boat in closer for fear of getting caught in the next wave. Wow, what a story!We are happy that our Galapagos tsunami story is much less exciting.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Wondering about Easter Island
We were planning to leave Monday for Easter Island. And in fact we have friends who are already enroute.
At the internet cafe at 1pm local time today, we searched for information, but only found the President of Chile's warning/fears about EI getting hit. Have not heard anything more since the.
We are wondering whether to get underway on Monday as planned.
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Tsunami Alert!!
Whoo, thanks to Debi Ball who emailed me this morning about the earthquake in Chile and the possible tsunami. She didn't give any details, but it helped to know what was happening when all the water started draining out of the basin we are anchored in.
It was crazy for a half hour, and is still a little strange here 2 hours later.
The water receded about 5' in 5 minutes, and then came back in in another 5 minutes. And the cycle repeated itself a few times over the next hour. It was really strange seeing the rocks grow out of the water, and the current was really really strong, about 6-8 knots, in an out, with some eddies thrown in. We were actually scared to death. As we saw the water receding, we were also getting worried that we might end up on the bottom at some point. Fortunately we started out in about 15 feet of water, so even with a 5' drop we still had plenty of water under our keel.
We got the engine going and ready to get underway, but the current was so crazy it would have been suicidal to get underway in those conditions. We also had a boat coming in from offshore, and they hung around outside watching for any big waves.
On the morning radio net, we heard that the port captains in the other Galapagos ports had rousted all the boats in the early morning hours and made them go to sea. They were all milling around outside in deep water this morning. The same in Panama and the boats along the Central American coast that we talked to every day on the radio.
We keep watch on VHF 69 (a nice quiet frequency) to be able to talk to our friends, but didn't have Ch16 on. So we are not sure if our Port Captain tried to tell us to leave. There are no other bigger boats in the harbor here this morning, but that's not unusual for a Saturday morning (they are all in Santa Cruz normally on Saturday changing passengers). The two fishing boats tied to the big yellow mooring ball are still there, however.
Anyway, we are safe. Hopefully there are no more earthquakes in Chile (or anywhere else nearby).
(2 Hours later... we are still seeing the water in the 'basin' sloshing about. But still no problems. The town at Puerto Villamil was evacuated to the hills, so when we went ashore to send some emails, we found nobody there! But the townspeople are coming back now, so I guess we're out of the woods).
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