4 Large Quakes Hits Ring-of-Fire

July 15, four large quakes have occurred along the ring of fire. The first occurred in the Vanuatu Islands where a 6.3 quake hit about 8:30 PM local time.Followed by a 6.1 quake on Fox Island, Aleutian Islands ? Alaska. The third quake hit Japan measuring at 6.7 magnitude. Several injuries and damage have been reported. Also a small tsunami has occurred. The forth quake hit Venezuela with the USGS reporting another 6.7 magnitude. Location with respect to nearby cities: 18 km (11 miles) SW (223 degrees) of Guiria, Venezuela.

So far, the worst of this series is Japan. The 6.7 magnitude earthquake rocked Japan's northwest coast on Monday, injuring at least 20 people, knocking over homes and triggering a series of small tsunamis. Several smaller aftershocks jolted the region.

Black smoke was seen pouring from the nearby Kashiwazaki nuclear plant, which was automatically shut down in the quake. NHK reported the smoke was caused by a fire in an electrical transformer, and that no radioactivity had been released.

The Meteorological Agency issued tsunami warnings along the coasts of Niigata Prefecture, warning of small tsunamis in other coasts, but no significant damage was expected.Waves as high as 50 centimeters were believed to have hit the coasts of northwestern prefecture (state) of Niigata.The tremor swayed buildings in Tokyo and was felt in wider areas including northern and central Japan.

All I can say at this point is I do not believe this series of quakes is over. I do not have any scientific evidence that a 5^th quake will occur, but since seismic activity has been too quiet, tectonic plates have not had the typical release needed to minimize large activity. (Mitch Batross)

UPDATE 1
The second of two large quakes have hit Japan. Over 800 reported injured, 8 dead and counting. The largest nuclear plant in the world has been damaged with radiation leaking. Further information regarding the radioactive leak is hard to access. Some suggest an 'order of suppression' has been mandated.
UPDATE 2
July 17 a 6.0 magnitude quake hit northern Tanzania, after this another large quake hit south of the Fiji Islands measuring a 6.3 magnitude
UPDATE 3
July 24, a 7.0 magnitude quake hit Indonesia & Sulawesi. Tsunami warning was recended.
UPDATE 4
7.3 magnitude quake hit at approximately 11:15 (PDT) Wednesday, August 1, 2007 Location:Vanuatu- Tsunami Warning Called Off -(NOAA) Based on all available data, a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected and there is no tsunami threat to Hawaii.