2007 Gisborne earthquake

The 2007 Gisborne earthquake occurred under the Pacific Ocean about 50 kilometres (31 mi) off the eastern coast of New Zealand's North Island at 8:55 pm NZDT on 20 December. The tremor had a moment magnitude of 6.7 and maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe), and affected the city of Gisborne, but was felt widely across the country from Auckland in the north to Dunedin in the south.[1]

2007 Gisborne earthquake
UTC time2007-12-20 07:55:15
ISC event13293317
USGS-ANSSComCat
Local date20 December 2007 (2007-12-20Z)
Local time8:55 pm NZDT (UTC+13)
Magnitude6.7 Mw[1]
Depth33 km (21 mi)
Epicenter38.89°S 178.54°E / -38.89; 178.54
Areas affectedNew Zealand
Max. intensityVIII (Severe)
Peak acceleration0.28 g
Casualties1 dead, 11 injured

Effects
Damage outside Health 2000 Main Street

While the earthquake was initially reported to have caused no deaths, an elderly woman in Gisborne suffered a heart attack and died shortly after the quake.[2] A number of buildings in central Gisborne were damaged. The central business district was closed off to allow building inspectors to assess buildings for damage; three buildings had collapsed. There were blackouts immediately after the earthquake hit.[3] The town clock stopped at 8:55 pm.[4] As of 14 January 2008, the Earthquake Commission had received over 3100 insurance claims amounting to $16 million.[5] It was earlier estimated that the cost of damage caused by the earthquake could rise to $30 million.[6]

See also

References
  1. M 6.7, Gisborne, 20 December 2007. GeoNet.
  2. One dead, up to 20 injured after huge quake, The New Zealand Herald, 21 December 2007.
  3. Quake 6.8 magnitude hits east coast, TVNZ, 21 December 2007.
  4. 'Rattled Gisborne residents pick up the pieces after quake', 3News. 21 December 2007. Retrieved 6 June 2009. Archived 10 June 2009.
  5. Recent events Archived 26 February 2008 at the Wayback Machine, EQC Insurance. Updated and. Retrieved 14 January 2008.
  6. The $30m shockwave, 22 December 2007
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.