A 7.7 magnitude was reported in the Caribbean Sea between Jamaica and Cuba today. The earthquake caused strong shaking in portions of far western Jamaica that were capable of heavy damage.
Video’s showed Jamaican school children huddled under their desk for safety. Three weeks after the Puerto Rico earthquake, only 20% of schools in Puerto Rico are open and deemed safe.
Other countries affected by the quake were Cuba, the Bahamas, Haiti and Honduras. The quake was felt as far away as south Florida, as buildings in Miami were evacuated as a precaution.
January has been a busy month for earthquakes in the Caribbean. Puerto Rico has been hit especially hard in a sequence that started after Christmas.
The sequence has produced 300 quakes larger then magnitude three, which can be feld by humans.
A magnitude 7.7 earthquake in the Caribbean Sea, followed by a series of strong aftershocks, shook a large stretch from Florida to Mexico on Tuesday but apparently caused no major damage or casualties.
The USGS initially estimated the quake’s magnitude at 7.3 before upgrading it to 7.7. The ensuing aftershocks so far have topped out at a magnitude 6.1.
The USGS said, that also moderate shaking was felt on Grand Cayman Island, while light shaking was reported on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico.
USA Today / ABC Flash Point Earthquake News 2020.
We felt trembling on the island of Curacao along the coast of Venezuela.