6.4 magnitude earthquake in Atlantic Ocean near Barbados creates possibility of local tsunami

The Weather Channel
Thu, 16 Jul 2015 12:27 UTC

© USGS

The epicenter of Thursday's earthquake off the coast of Barbados.

An earthquake in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Barbados Thursday shook tiny island chains, and also created the risk of a localized tsunami.

The magnitude-6.4 quake hit around 11:15 a.m. ET, and was centered 87 miles northeast of Barbados. The tremor was shallow, only about 3 miles deep.

The USGS estimates as many as 1 million people felt the jolt. People from Bridgetown, Barbados, well south into the Port of Spain report feeling weak to light shaking.

On the beach in Barbados and the sun-bed starts to do a little jiggle... #earthquake pic.twitter.com/vsJFpwVJWA

— Jojo Regan (@JojoRegan) July 16, 2015

Wow. That earthquake was palpable. 6.5 is no joke.

— Valmiki K. Seecheran (@VaSeech) July 16, 2015

There are no reports of damage or injuries.

While there is no widespread risk of tsunami, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was a "small possibility of a local tsunami that could affect coasts located usually no more than one hundred kilometers from the earthquake epicenter."

The USGS recorded a 5.2-magnitude aftershock about 35 minutes after the main event.