July 2006 Java earthquake
Encyclopedia
The July 2006 Java earthquake was a magnitude
7.7 earthquake
off the southwestern coast of Java
, Indonesia
. It occurred on July 17, 2006, at 08:24 UTC
(15:24 local time).
The U.S. Geological Survey placed the epicentre
of the quake at 9.295°S 107.347°E, and its hypocentre
at a depth of 48.6 km below the seabed
. This is 225 km (139.8 mi) NE of Christmas Island
, 240 km (149.1 mi) SSW of Tasikmalaya
, Indonesia, and 358 km (222.5 mi) S of Jakarta
, the capital and largest city of Indonesia.
. On this part of their mutual boundary, the Australia plate moves north-northeast with respect to the Sunda plate at about 59 mm/year. The Australia plate thrusts beneath the Sunda plate at the Java Trench
, south of Java, and is subducted to progressively greater depths beneath Java and north of Java. The earthquake occurred on the shallow part of the plate boundary, about 50 km north of the Java trench."
At least three non-Indonesian nationals were among the dead, including travellers from the Netherlands
, Pakistan
and Sweden
. The Swedish foreign ministry reported that two Swedish children on holiday in the region were missing the first day; they were later found at safe ground higher up in the community.
.
The tsunami smashed into a 110-mile stretch of Java’s coastline that was unaffected by the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. Waves more than 6 feet high reached 200 yards inland in some places, destroying scores of houses, restaurants and hotels. Cars, motorbikes and boats were left mangled amid fishing nets, furniture and other debris.
The tsunami struck the southern Indonesian coastal villages of Cipatujah
and Pangandaran
on the coast southeast of Bandung
and Garut
. There is reportedly extensive damage at the West Java beach resort of Pangandaran
. Thousands of people at the resort fled to higher ground.
on December 26, 2004. Despite this, India still issued a tsunami warning for the Andaman Islands
archipelago
region, which is located in the Bay of Bengal
. This archipelago suffered severe damage in the December 26, 2004 tsunami. A warning was also issued for Christmas Island
, however police reports from the island say that no damage was caused. A mere 60 cm tsunami was recorded at the Bureau of Meteorology
’s tide gauge on the island. A warning was also issued for the Kimberley region
of Western Australia
.
in Hawaii
issued a Tsunami bulletin 12 minutes after the earthquake alerting Indonesia (Java) and Australia (Christmas Island) to a possible local tsunami affecting coasts within a 100 km radius from the quake epicentre. The bulletin gave an estimated tsunami impact time for Indonesia of 09:00 UTC, an advanced warning of 24 minutes. It suggested that based on historical data, the risk of a destructive widespread tsunami was non-existent. The second bulletin issued two and a half hours later confirmed the occurrence of local tsunami by the news media and the reiteration that a more widespread tsunami was non-existent.
Kusmayanto Kadiman, the State Minister for Research and Technology confirmed that Indonesian officials had received bulletins from both the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center
in Hawaii
and the Japan Meteorological Agency
twenty minutes before the first tsunami wave struck. However, Kadiman indicated that the government did not publicise the bulletins because they did not want to cause unnecessary alarm. According to an AP
report, he had stated the bulletins were received 45 minutes before the tsunami hit. He later stated that warnings were issued seven minutes before incident via text messaging but that it was not enough time to alert local communities.
Edi Prihantoro, an official at Indonesia’s Ministry of Research and Technology that oversees a national warning project, said the southern Java area had no system to warn people of coming waves.
As part of a five-year project to install tsunami buoys
around the archipelago, Indonesia deployed two such devices off the island of Sumatra last year. However, when asked how many of the deployed devices were operational, Prihantoro replied: “None.” He continued, “We need at least 22 buoys to cover all of Indonesia. We have received two from Germany and they were deployed months ago. However, both of them are damaged now.” Both devices have since been decommissioned and one of them is awaiting repairs.
. Based on the research tsunamis have been done several times before at Pangandaran.
Moment magnitude scale
The moment magnitude scale is used by seismologists to measure the size of earthquakes in terms of the energy released. The magnitude is based on the seismic moment of the earthquake, which is equal to the rigidity of the Earth multiplied by the average amount of slip on the fault and the size of...
7.7 earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
off the southwestern coast of Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. It occurred on July 17, 2006, at 08:24 UTC
Coordinated Universal Time
Coordinated Universal Time is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is one of several closely related successors to Greenwich Mean Time. Computer servers, online services and other entities that rely on having a universally accepted time use UTC for that purpose...
(15:24 local time).
The U.S. Geological Survey placed the epicentre
Epicenter
The epicenter or epicentre is the point on the Earth's surface that is directly above the hypocenter or focus, the point where an earthquake or underground explosion originates...
of the quake at 9.295°S 107.347°E, and its hypocentre
Hypocenter
The hypocenter refers to the site of an earthquake or a nuclear explosion...
at a depth of 48.6 km below the seabed
Seabed
The seabed is the bottom of the ocean.- Ocean structure :Most of the oceans have a common structure, created by common physical phenomena, mainly from tectonic movement, and sediment from various sources...
. This is 225 km (139.8 mi) NE of Christmas Island
Christmas Island
The Territory of Christmas Island is a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean. It is located northwest of the Western Australian city of Perth, south of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, and ENE of the Cocos Islands....
, 240 km (149.1 mi) SSW of Tasikmalaya
Tasikmalaya
Tasikmalaya is a city in southeastern West Java, Indonesia, between Bandung and Purwokerto on the southerly of the two major road routes across Java...
, Indonesia, and 358 km (222.5 mi) S of Jakarta
Jakarta
Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...
, the capital and largest city of Indonesia.
Cause
According to the U.S. Geological Survey "The earthquake occurred as a result of thrust-faulting on the boundary between the Australia plate and the Sunda PlateSunda Plate
The Sunda Plate is the tectonic plate on which the majority of Southeast Asia is located. It was formerly considered a part of the Eurasian Plate, but GPS measurements have confirmed its independent movement at 10 mm/yr eastward relative to Eurasia...
. On this part of their mutual boundary, the Australia plate moves north-northeast with respect to the Sunda plate at about 59 mm/year. The Australia plate thrusts beneath the Sunda plate at the Java Trench
Java Trench
The Sunda Trench, earlier known as, and sometimes still indicated as the Java Trench, located in the northeastern Indian Ocean, with a length of and a maximum depth of , is the second-deepest point in the Indian Ocean after Diamantina Trench, which is 8,047 metres deep...
, south of Java, and is subducted to progressively greater depths beneath Java and north of Java. The earthquake occurred on the shallow part of the plate boundary, about 50 km north of the Java trench."
Estimated casualties
The Ministry of Health (MOH) reports that approximately 668 people died, 65 are missing and 9,299 are in-treatment because of the disaster.At least three non-Indonesian nationals were among the dead, including travellers from the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. The Swedish foreign ministry reported that two Swedish children on holiday in the region were missing the first day; they were later found at safe ground higher up in the community.
| Deaths | Injured | Missing | Displaced | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Confirmed | Estimated | ||||
| Total | 547 | 550 | 595 | 275 | 54,256 |
Aftershocks
The USGS recorded at least 22 aftershocks south of Java ranging between magnitude 4.6 and 6.1. The two largest aftershocks measured 6.0 and 6.1 MwMoment magnitude scale
The moment magnitude scale is used by seismologists to measure the size of earthquakes in terms of the energy released. The magnitude is based on the seismic moment of the earthquake, which is equal to the rigidity of the Earth multiplied by the average amount of slip on the fault and the size of...
.
Tsunami
The July 2006 Java earthquake caused a three-meter-high tsunami which destroyed houses on the south coast of Java, killing at least 668 people and leaving at least 65 missing.The tsunami smashed into a 110-mile stretch of Java’s coastline that was unaffected by the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. Waves more than 6 feet high reached 200 yards inland in some places, destroying scores of houses, restaurants and hotels. Cars, motorbikes and boats were left mangled amid fishing nets, furniture and other debris.
The tsunami struck the southern Indonesian coastal villages of Cipatujah
Cipatujah
Cipatujah is a sub-district in Tasikmalaya, West Java, Indonesia. Its area is 0.22 km² with population of 54,766....
and Pangandaran
Pangandaran
Pangandaran is a small town and a subdistrict in southern Ciamis regency, West Java, Indonesia. It is located on the southern coast of Java. Pangandaran is a popular tourist destination, having a beach which is considered to be one of the finest in Java and which offers excellent surfing.A...
on the coast southeast of Bandung
Bandung
Bandung is the capital of West Java province in Indonesia, and the country's third largest city, and 2nd largest metropolitan area in Indonesia, with a population of 7.4 million in 2007. Located 768 metres above sea level, approximately 140 km southeast of Jakarta, Bandung has cooler...
and Garut
Garut
Garut is a town in the West Java province of Indonesia and is the capital of the Garut Regency. It is located about 75 km to the southeast of the major city of Bandung.-History:...
. There is reportedly extensive damage at the West Java beach resort of Pangandaran
Pangandaran
Pangandaran is a small town and a subdistrict in southern Ciamis regency, West Java, Indonesia. It is located on the southern coast of Java. Pangandaran is a popular tourist destination, having a beach which is considered to be one of the finest in Java and which offers excellent surfing.A...
. Thousands of people at the resort fled to higher ground.
Localised tsunami
Following the earthquake, the Indonesian Meteorological and Geophysics Agency stated that “There is the possibility of a local tsunami that could affect coasts located usually no more than 100 kilometres from the earthquake epicentre”, indicating the improbability of a large-scale tsunami, like the one that affected Indonesia and other areas following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea megathrust earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on Sunday, December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake itself is known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake...
on December 26, 2004. Despite this, India still issued a tsunami warning for the Andaman Islands
Andaman Islands
The Andaman Islands are a group of Indian Ocean archipelagic islands in the Bay of Bengal between India to the west, and Burma , to the north and east...
archipelago
Archipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
region, which is located in the Bay of Bengal
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal , the largest bay in the world, forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered mostly by the Eastern Coast of India, southern coast of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to the west and Burma and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the...
. This archipelago suffered severe damage in the December 26, 2004 tsunami. A warning was also issued for Christmas Island
Christmas Island
The Territory of Christmas Island is a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean. It is located northwest of the Western Australian city of Perth, south of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, and ENE of the Cocos Islands....
, however police reports from the island say that no damage was caused. A mere 60 cm tsunami was recorded at the Bureau of Meteorology
Bureau of Meteorology
The Bureau of Meteorology is an Executive Agency of the Australian Government responsible for providing weather services to Australia and surrounding areas. It was established in 1906 under the Meteorology Act, and brought together the state meteorological services that existed before then...
’s tide gauge on the island. A warning was also issued for the Kimberley region
Kimberley region of Western Australia
The Kimberley is one of the nine regions of Western Australia. It is located in the northern part of Western Australia, bordered on the west by the Indian Ocean, on the north by the Timor Sea, on the south by the Great Sandy and Tanami Deserts, and on the east by the Northern Territory.The region...
of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
.
Warning
The Pacific Tsunami Warning CenterPacific Tsunami Warning Center
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center is one of two tsunami warning centers that are operated by NOAA in the United States. Headquartered in Ewa Beach, Hawaii, the PTWC is part of an international tsunami warning system program and serves as the operational center for TWS of the Pacific issuing...
in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
issued a Tsunami bulletin 12 minutes after the earthquake alerting Indonesia (Java) and Australia (Christmas Island) to a possible local tsunami affecting coasts within a 100 km radius from the quake epicentre. The bulletin gave an estimated tsunami impact time for Indonesia of 09:00 UTC, an advanced warning of 24 minutes. It suggested that based on historical data, the risk of a destructive widespread tsunami was non-existent. The second bulletin issued two and a half hours later confirmed the occurrence of local tsunami by the news media and the reiteration that a more widespread tsunami was non-existent.
Kusmayanto Kadiman, the State Minister for Research and Technology confirmed that Indonesian officials had received bulletins from both the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center
Pacific Tsunami Warning Center
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center is one of two tsunami warning centers that are operated by NOAA in the United States. Headquartered in Ewa Beach, Hawaii, the PTWC is part of an international tsunami warning system program and serves as the operational center for TWS of the Pacific issuing...
in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
and the Japan Meteorological Agency
Japan Meteorological Agency
The or JMA, is the Japanese government's weather service. Charged with gathering and reporting weather data and forecasts in Japan, it is a semi-autonomous part of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport...
twenty minutes before the first tsunami wave struck. However, Kadiman indicated that the government did not publicise the bulletins because they did not want to cause unnecessary alarm. According to an AP
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
report, he had stated the bulletins were received 45 minutes before the tsunami hit. He later stated that warnings were issued seven minutes before incident via text messaging but that it was not enough time to alert local communities.
Edi Prihantoro, an official at Indonesia’s Ministry of Research and Technology that oversees a national warning project, said the southern Java area had no system to warn people of coming waves.
As part of a five-year project to install tsunami buoys
Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunamis
The Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunamis system is a component of an enhanced tsunami warning system.- Stations :...
around the archipelago, Indonesia deployed two such devices off the island of Sumatra last year. However, when asked how many of the deployed devices were operational, Prihantoro replied: “None.” He continued, “We need at least 22 buoys to cover all of Indonesia. We have received two from Germany and they were deployed months ago. However, both of them are damaged now.” Both devices have since been decommissioned and one of them is awaiting repairs.
Evacuation
At least 23,000 people did eventually evacuate the coast, either afraid that more tsunami were coming or because their homes had been destroyed.History
South Java Beach which has been strucked by 2006 tsunami, has been strucked 400 years before with greater earthquake and tsunami. The methodology was to search paleotsunami deposit, but the researh done after 2006 tsunami at Cikembulan River Cliff, PangandaranPangandaran
Pangandaran is a small town and a subdistrict in southern Ciamis regency, West Java, Indonesia. It is located on the southern coast of Java. Pangandaran is a popular tourist destination, having a beach which is considered to be one of the finest in Java and which offers excellent surfing.A...
. Based on the research tsunamis have been done several times before at Pangandaran.