A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck Hawaii Island at 9:46 p.m. Friday, centered about seven miles east-southeast of Honaunau in South Kona, and the shaking was strong enough to be felt far beyond the Big Island.
The quake was located about 3.7 miles east-southeast of the Honaunau-Napoopoo area along the western flank of Mauna Loa, and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said no tsunami was generated and none was expected.
Reports of strong shaking came in from Omao on Kauai, from Kailua, Ewa Beach and Kapolei on Oahu, and from Makawao and Wailuku on Maui, a wide reach that matched the scale of the earthquake hawaii event as it moved through the islands. The shaking was also felt on Hawaii Island itself, where the quake’s location on the flank of Mauna Loa put South Kona closest to the epicenter.
The event followed a magnitude 5.9 earthquake that shook the State of Hawaiʻi at 9:46 p.m. on Friday night, also on the western flank of Mauna Loa volcano just south of Hoʻokena in the South Kona district. The similarity in time and location underscored how closely linked the seismic activity was in the same part of the island.
For residents, the most immediate question after a quake of this size is whether a tsunami warning will follow, and this time the answer was no. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said some areas may have experienced strong shaking, but the quake did not generate a tsunami threat, removing the most dangerous next step from a night that still sent many people across the islands checking their homes, phones and neighbors.
The setting matters because the western flank of Mauna Loa is one of the most closely watched parts of Hawaii Island for seismic activity, and earthquakes there can travel well beyond the source. Friday night’s quake showed that reach plainly, with reports coming in from multiple islands instead of a single community.
Big Island Video News said the breaking news story would be updated when more information became available. For now, the clearest takeaway is that the earthquake was strong, widely felt and, despite its size, not followed by a tsunami.
