A magnitude-4.6 earthquake struck Hawaiʻi Island late Tuesday evening, according to the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. The quake occurred at 11:49 p.m. HST and was located about 10 miles south-southeast of Fern Forest in the Puna district, roughly 6 miles below sea level on the south flank of Kīlauea volcano.
The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory indicated that little or no structural damage was expected from the event. Meanwhile, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center confirmed that the earthquake was not strong enough to pose any tsunami threat to Hawaiʻi.
Notably, the seismic activity occurred just minutes after Episode 37 of the ongoing Kīlauea summit eruption came to an end. The episode—marked by high lava fountaining from the volcano’s north vent—lasted just over nine hours before concluding approximately 10 minutes prior to the earthquake.
