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Operational Response of the PRSN for the Southwest Puerto Rico Seismic Sequence

Description: 

During 2020 Puerto Rico experienced the greater seismic sequence in recent times. The main event occurred on January 7, 2020, with magnitude of 6.4 Mww located at the southern coast of Puerto Rico main island. This seismic sequence continues active with more than 1,748 significant events, with magnitudes greater than 3.45 Md, and more than 55 events with magnitudes greater than magnitude 4.5, that continued to damage structures. The sequence is characterized also by the occurrence of thousands of events that were felt widely through Puerto Rico and some of them causing damage in the South of the main island. Operationally this sequence implied the activation of personnel of the Geophysical Data Analysis Division at PRSN, shift reorganization and evaluation of current communication protocols at PRSN AOR. This discussion will go over the response of PRSN during the Southwest Puerto Rico Seismic Sequence, the organization and situations faced during operations, and the response due to multiple felt events that affected the Puerto Rican population through 3 years of continuous activity. The challenges in communications with the emergency management agencies of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands Region, information disseminated to the general public, and lessons learned during the response of the seismic sequence will also be discussed.

Session: The 2020-2021 Southwest Puerto Rico Seismic Sequence: Current State of Knowledge and Implications [Poster]

Type: Poster

Date: 4/18/2023

Presentation Time: 08:00 AM (local time)

Presenting Author: Benjamin Colón-Rodríguez

Student Presenter: No

Invited Presentation: 

Authors