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5.4 quake jolts CNMI, scares many Rota residents
A 5.4-magnitude earthquake occurred near Rota yesterday morning, prompting many residents of the island to run outside buildings and houses for safety. The temblor was also felt on Saipan and Tinian.
CNMI Homeland Security and Emergency Management special assistant Marvin K. Seman told Saipan Tribune there were no reports of injuries and damage to property.
According to the U.S. Geological Service, the temblor occurred at 10:30am, with the epicenter at 38 kilometers southwest of Rota at a depth of 62.9 miles (101.2km).
Seman said the people on Rota were “just kind of shocked” about the strength of the earthquake because it was closer to them.
“It’s kind of odd because we haven’t had this many earthquakes, the two earthquakes in a short period of time close to the islands,” he said.
A staff from Rota Mayor’s Office in a telephone interview said the employees got scared and ran outside the building. The staff said there were two shaking that lasted a total of about 20 seconds.
“It started shaking and stopped, then it’s shaking again so everybody ran outside,” the employee said.
She said some residents of Sinapalo I claimed that they did not feel the earthquake.
Seman said they issued a bulletin announcing that there was no tsunami watch or warning as a result of the earthquake.
When asked about the earthquake’s cause, Seman said the crashing between the Philippine plate and the Pacific plate normally causes earthquakes.
“We’re basically on the Philippine plate. They’re constantly crashing with the Pacific plate. So we’re in between both. The Philippine plate is to the west of us, the Pacific Plate is to the east,” he said.
Seman said when the plates start moving and shifting, that would normally trigger earthquakes.
On Monday, a 4.8-magnitude temblor occurred near Saipan. It was also felt on Tinian. There were no reports of injuries and damage to property.
