State reminded on quake anniversary to secure items in home

By Kevin Dayton
Advertiser Big Island Bureau

HILO, Hawai'i — Thirty years ago today, the Big Island was rattled by a magnitude 6.2 earthquake centered beneath the town of Honomu that did an estimated $6 million in damage, including more than 400 homes and businesses.

Scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey this week reminded the public of that event, at a time when many residents may have forgotten the risks.

Scientists say the 1973 earthquake wasn't even close to the largest in state history. In 1975, the Big Island was rocked by a 7.2 quake centered at Kalapana that killed two people, and an 1868 earthquake off the coast of Ka'u was estimated at a monstrous 7.9 on the Richter scale. That earthquake caused 81 deaths.

By comparison, the 1989 Loma Prieta, Calif., earthquake was a 7.1, and the 1994 Northridge, Calif., earthquake was a 6.7.

Each whole number increase in the Richter scale represents a release of about 31 times more energy, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Hawai'i's last significant earthquake was a magnitude 6.2 temblor centered at Kalapana in 1989. In the 14 years of quiet that have followed, thousands of people have moved in.

Big Island Mayor Harry Kim, who was county civil defense director for many years, worries about large new discount stores stacking boxes to the ceiling, and homeowners who stack stereo equipment.

"You don't think about it," Kim said. "But anyone who has experienced an earthquake near 7 or high 6s knows that a refrigerator will dance out of your wall 2 or 3 feet because it's not anchored."

In recent years, Big Island officials have updated the building code to require that propane tanks and water heaters be better secured, and to make pier-and-post construction safer. But there is a limit to what they can do.

"People forget that earthquakes of this size are — I hate to say it, but I'll say it — a common, natural occurrence for the island of Hawai'i," Kim said.