Sailors Awakened by 6.6. Magnitude Earthquake in Okinawa

OKINAWA, Japan (NNS) -- A magnitude 6.6 earthquake shook the island of Okinawa Japan during the wee hours of the morning, March 3.

Sailors from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 1 were preparing to attend their morning physical training (PT) session when the tremor rocked Camp Shields.

"I have never experienced an earthquake before," said Information Systems Technician 3rd Class Nancy Vergara, from St. Paul, Minn. "At first, I didn't even know what it was, but I noticed it after the second wave of stronger tremors came through after a brief pause from the initial onset."

Earthquakes are commonplace in Japan, which experiences them frequently throughout the year. 

They can also generate tsunamis, but according to the Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center in Monterey, Calif., a destructive tsunami was not generated because the earthquake is located too deep inside the earth.

The epicenter of the quake was located 60 miles north of Camp Shields in the Ryukyu Islands Japan. 

The Okinawa emergency guide states that Okinawa sits in an area called "The Pacific Ring of Fire." This area is the most volatile region for seismic activity in the world. Since there is no way to predict when and where an earthquake will occur, NMCB 1 Sailors need to be ready to take action and remain safe in an emergency situation.

"Every deployment site has to be ready to respond to events specific to their geographic area," said NMCB 1 Executive Officer Lt. Cmdr. Bob Stiles. "In Okinawa, we deliberately prepare for potential natural disasters like earthquakes, tsunamis and typhoons. In addition to sharing information from emergency action guides to prepare our Seabees and keep them safe, we develop written plans to define procedures and assign responsibilities in case we need to react."

NMCB 1 is currently deployed to several countries in the Pacific region and three sites in the United States as part of its 2014 deployment. Aligned with Secretary of The Navy Ray Mabus' four priorities of people, platforms, partnerships and power, the battalion will deliver the Navy's forward presence through its work with several host nations at its Pacific Civic Construction Action Details in the and will continue to conduct construction operations in the Northern Command.

Coast Guard Helps Deploy Seismic Sensors In Southeast Alaska

JUNEAU, Alaska—The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Maple worked with scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey to deploy 12 seismic sensors along the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather Fault, northwest of Craig, Alaska, Friday and Saturday.


The team placed the ocean-bottom seismometers along a 28-mile section of the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather Fault to improve understanding of recent earthquake activity and associated seismic and tsunami hazards in Southeast Alaska coastal communities.

"The Queen Charlotte-Fairweather fault is similar to the northern San Andreas fault, with the same earthquake potential," said Dr. Peter Haeussler, a research geologist with the USGS. "A problem is that it is located entirely offshore, so it is much harder to study."

The Maple, a 225-foot buoy tender homeported in Sitka, has all the necessary equipment on board to handle hefty equipment like the OBS.

"Our crew uses the buoy deck and crane to routinely service aids to navigation of all shapes and sizes," said Lt. Cmdr. Fred Seaton, commanding officer of the Maple. "We were more than happy to assist the USGS in deploying equipment that will raise earthquake and tsunami awareness in Southeast Alaska."

The crew deployed the 12 seismometers over two days before returning to Sitka. These instruments, and the data they record, are due to be recovered in early June.

"The Coast Guard's willingness to provide a ship for the deployment allowed us to take advantage of a unique opportunity to observe aftershock activity and learn more about fault structure and expected long-term seismic behavior in the region," Haeussler said.

DEVELOPING: 7.8 Earthquake Rocks Iran

Pakistanis evacuated from buildings in Karachi following a massive earthquake centered in neighboring Iran, April 16, 2013. / Getty Images

DEVELOPING: There are reports coming out today that Iran and Pakistan border was hit by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake Tuesday morning. Nearby countries felt this massive earthquake.

The U.S. Geological Survey says the magnitude was estimated at 7.8 and the depth at 51 miles.

The quake was centered near the border with Pakistan, in a sparsely populated region of southeast Iran.

Reports on Iran's Press TV said at least 40 people had been killed, but no official figures were given and the reports could not be immediately confirmed. Another Iranian news agency, the semi-official ISNA, quoted an official from the national emergency response agency as saying there had been no deaths in Iran due to the quake. It wasn't immediately possible to reconcile the varying reports coming from Iranian media.

A senior Pakistani official did confirm to CBS News' Farhan Bokhari, however, that five people were killed in that country as a result of the quake.

"The number of casualties could rise as reports come in from different parts of the region," added the official. Reuters reported that five people -- three women and two children -- were killed when their house collapsed in the Baluchistan region, which spans the Iran-Pakistan border.

Iran's Red Crescent said it was facing a "complicated emergency situation" in the area with villages scattered over desolate hills and valleys. Iran's semiofficial ISNA news agency and others described the quake as the strongest to hit the region in more than 50 years.

Iran is prone to quakes, and the nation's southern coast runs along the boundary of a tectonic plate. The southeastern corner of the country, near the epicenter of Tuesday's temblor, sits near the point where three separate plates meet.