Yesterday evening’s quake in South-central Sumatra (45 km WNW of Padang, Sumatra, Indonesia) is listed as Magnitude 7.6. and as having occurred on 30 Sep 2009 at 10:16:09 UTC (SST 06:16:09 PM). In comparison, the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami was unleashed by a 9.3 magnitude jolt along the same fault line [BBC].
The USGS Earthquake Hazards Program collects data about the intensity of each quake from the ground which is submitted by the public. This is compiled for the USGS Community Internet Intensity Map, a form of ground-truthing. Safe from the earthquake, Singapore still experienced tremors and 300 people submitted Type III intensity (weak shaking, no damage) records.
Extensive damage is reported in Padang with thousands trapped under rubble and a death toll expected to exceed a thousand [CNA].
“Professor Kerry Sieh, professor of Geology, Earth Observatory of Singapore, NTU, said: “It’s definitely getting worse. The earthquake sequence began in 2000 with a 7.9 about 800 km away from the south of Singapore. You haven’t felt this big of a sequence of earthquakes that is many large earthquakes for at least 175 years.”"
