On 6 February 2013, a powerful M8.0 earthquake occurred at 01:12 UTC off the Santa Cruz Islands, Solomons due to shallow thrust faulting at a depth of 28 km on or near the plate boundary interface between the Australia and Pacific plates. The M8 earthquake generated a tsunami that was recorded on sea level gauges around the Pacific. The largest wave of 1 m amplitude was recorded at Lata Wharf located about 50 km from the epicenter. Over the month leading up to the event, there had been dozens of earthquakes in the epicentral region, 7 of which were greater than M6. There were also two greater than M6 aftershocks.
The PTWC issued a regional tsunami warning for countries in the Southwest Pacific 6 minutes after the earthquake and continued to monitor the tsunami. PTWC cancelled the regional warning after 2:32 hours. Reports from the Solomons National Disaster Center indicate at least 9 casualties with damage to at least four villages and about 700 homes in Temoto Province.
For more technical information, visit this tsunami's event page (click here).