Chile's magnitude 8.2 earthquake kills 5, causes small tsunami.

A major earthquake of magnitude 8.2 hit Chile Tuesday night, killing at least five people and setting off a small tsunami that forced the evacuation of coastal areas and warnings for much of Latin America's Pacific Coast. By late Tuesday, tsunami warnings and watches remained for the coasts of Peru and Chile, while U.S. officials reported no threat along the coasts of Alaska, California, Oregon or Washington. The danger to Hawaii was still under evaluation, but the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said it didn't expect a major tsunami threat to the islands. The center issued an advisory saying swimmers, boaters and others at beaches might see strong currents and sea level changes. The USGS initially reported the tremor at 8.0, but later upgraded the magnitude. It said the quake struck 61 miles (99 kilometers) northwest of the Chilean city of Iquique at 6:46 p.m. U.S. Central time, hitting a region that has been rocked by numerous quakes over the past two weeks. Aftershocks followed, including a magnitude-6.2 tremor and a 5.5 quake. Authorities issued a tsunami warning for the coasts of Chile, Peru and Ecuador, and a tsunami watch for the coasts of Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica and Nicaragua. "It may have been destructive along coasts near the earthquake epicenter and could also be a threat to more distant coasts," said a tsunami warning message issued at 7:14 p.m. Tuesday, Central Daylight Time. "Authorities should take appropriate action in response to this possibility." Waves measuring almost 2 meters (6 ½ feet) were striking cities on Chile's coast earlier Tuesday night, and authorities said a small tsunami could come ashore later. With a tsunami watch in effect, hundreds of thousands of people were preparing to spend the night on alert. Bill Knight, a scientist at the Tsunami Warning Center, said data showed that by the time waves generated by Tuesday night's magnitude-8.2 quake reach the West Coast early Wednesday, they'll be too small to pose any threat. Chile is one of the world's most earthquake-prone countries. A magnitude-8.8 quake and ensuing tsunami in February 2010 killed more than 500 people, destroyed 220,000 homes, and washed away docks, riverfronts and seaside resorts. A strong magnitude-6.7 earthquake off Chile's far-northern coast in March 16 caused more than 100,000 people to briefly evacuate low-lying areas and has been followed by an unsettling string of more than 300 aftershocks. The strongest earthquake ever recorded on Earth also happened in Chile -- a magnitude-9.5 tremor in 1960 that killed more than 5,000 people. An official at Peru's civil defense office said evacuations were underway on that country's coast, AP reported. The official, who did not give her name, said there were no immediate reports of damage. Police officer Alejandro Rosado in a Tacna, a Peruvian town near the coast, said no damage or injuries had been reported there. Rick Allmendinger is Cornell University structural geologist warned that the massive 8.2 magnitude quake may not be "the big one" for Chile. "The big question is - is this magnitude 8.1 earthquake the 'big one' that we have been expecting in northern Chile, or is this a foreshock to an even bigger earthquake to come?" Allmendinger said in a university press release. "As big as an 8.1 is, it probably has not released all of the stored up energy on the subduction earthquake fault in northern Chile." Wednesday 02 April 2014 http://www.nola.com/traffic/index.ssf/2014/04/chile_hit_by_a_magnitude_80_ea.html