The U.S. Geological Survey announced Friday that a magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck just south of Hawaii Island.
The quake, which the USGS initially reported as magnitude 6.3 before downgrading, had an epicenter 11 miles (18 km) to the south. Naalehu, Hawaii, 6 miles (10 km) deep. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center announced that there is no danger of a tsunami.
Some tremors were also felt in Honolulu, on the island of Oahu, about 200 miles (322 kilometers) north.
The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency posted on X that the earthquake, which occurred just after 10 a.m. local time, “may have caused strong shaking in many areas.” He also reiterated that there was no tsunami threat.
Big Island Mayor Mitch Ross was in Honolulu to see a cardiologist. “Suddenly, I felt dizzy,” he said, and at first he thought it was because of the surgery, but then he realized it was an earthquake. He immediately called emergency management personnel.
“We’ll probably start hearing about the damage within the next hour,” Ross said, noting it was a “fairly large earthquake” and there was no tsunami threat from what he had heard.
Ross said he was heading to the Honolulu airport to catch an early flight back to Hawaii Island.
Julia Neal, owner of Pahala Plantation Cottages, said the strong shaking caused mirrors and brass lamps to fall. “We have a lot of old wooden plantation homes, so there was some pretty loud rattling,” she said.
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Derek Nelson, manager of the Kona Canoe Club restaurant in the Kona Inn shopping village in the seaside community of Kona on the west side of the island, said everyone felt “in trouble.” However, he said there was no damage.
“I mean, it shook us so bad that our knees wobbled a little bit. Every window in the village shook,” he said.
