Today's Coming Crisis Movie

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Yosemite National Park Outbreak: Brits Warned Over Deadly Rodent Virus

UK health officials are contacting around 100 Britons they believe could have been exposed to a deadly rodent virus while on holiday in the US this summer.

Six visitors to California's Yosemite National Park have so far been infected with Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS), a disease caused by breathing in infected rodent dropping or urine particles.

Hantavirus has a mortality rate of around 38%. Of the six confirmed cases, two men have died.

It is not known whether any of those affected have been British citizens.

In a statement, the UK’s Health Protection Authority (HPA) said: "Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome is a rare but severe respiratory disease, which is sometimes fatal.

"It is spread by contact with infected rodents, primarily deer mice."

"The virus causing HPS in the US cannot be passed from person to person.

"There is no specific treatment for Hantavirus, but early recognition and supportive care can improve the outcome of this severe disease," the statement added. Read More

Belfast Police Attacked by Gangs For a Third Night

Police have come under attack in a third night of disturbances in Belfast as they were pelted with fireworks and bricks in the Carlisle Circus area of the city.

Riots around the same location over recent nights have left more than 60 officers injured.

Police used water canon and baton rounds during serious violence on Sunday and Monday which has been sparked by fresh tensions over parades.

Officers have called for politicians to do more to calm the sectarian disturbances which loyalist paramilitaries have been accused of orchestrating.

And with a major loyalist parade planned for September 29 the Police Service of Northern Ireland Assistant Chief Constable Will Kerr said: "Northern Ireland cannot afford an 11th hour solution."

The senior officer expressed fears that lives could be lost if the issue is not resolved. Read More

Syria Death Toll Is Staggering Says Envoy

The death toll in Syria is "staggering" and the destruction is reaching "catastrophic proportions", the new UN-Arab League envoy has said.

Lakhdar Brahimi said he would go to Damascus "in a few days" but warned that the conflict is "deteriorating steadily".

"The death toll is staggering, the destruction is reaching catastrophic proportions and the suffering of the people is immense," he said in a brief speech to the UN assembly.

"The future of Syria will be built by its people and none other," the 78-year-old diplomat added. "The support of the international community is indispensable and very urgent. It will only be effective if all pull in the same direction."

UN leader Ban Ki-moon also accused countries who send arms to Syria of spreading "misery" as he called for greater international efforts to end the war and ease a mounting humanitarian crisis.

"Those who provide arms to either side are only contributing to further misery - and the risk of unintended consequences as the fighting intensifies and spreads," he said.

Mr Ban did not name any country, but Russia is President Bashar al Assad's main arms supplier while UN officials say Iran has made arms deliveries to his forces. Read More

LA Forest Wildfire Could Take Days To Contain

Officials have warned it could take three days to contain a wildfire in the Angeles National Forest in southern California.

Dubbed the Williams fire, it has scorched at least 3,600 acres, injuring at least four people including two firefighters according to reports.

Forest spokeswoman L'Tanga Watson said the fire broke out near a campsite on Sunday afternoon in the San Gabriel Canyon area of the 655,000-acre Angeles National Forest.

It quickly grew to several hundred acres as flames chewed thick brush that was not touched by the destructive Station Fire in 2009.

The Angeles is less than 15 miles from Los Angeles at its southern end. It is one of the most heavily visited national forests with about 30 million annual visitors.

Earlier this week thousands of visitors were evacuated from Southern California due to the Williams fire. Read More

5.2 Magnitude Earthquake PHILIPPINE ISLANDS REGION - 5th September 2012

A magnitude 5.2 earthquake has struck the PHILIPPINE ISLANDS REGION at a depth of 35 km (21.7 miles), the quake hit at 00:35:30 UTC Wednesday 5th September 2012
The epicenter was 121 km (75 miles) Northeast of Sulangan, Philippines
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

5.2 Magnitude Earthquake VIRGIN ISLANDS REGION - 5th September 2012

A magnitude 5.2 earthquake has struck the VIRGIN ISLANDS REGION at a depth of 28 km (17.4 miles), the quake hit at 00:24:48 UTC Wednesday 5th September 2012
The epicenter was 109 km (67 miles) North from Settlement, Anegada, British Virgin Islands
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

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‘US to Iran: In case of Israeli strike, don’t fire on our bases’

The United States has no intention of joining in a preemptive Israeli strike on Iran and expects the Islamic Republic to refrain from attacking US targets in the case of such an attack, senior Washington officials told their Iranian counterparts, according to a report in Yedioth Ahronoth on Monday.

In recent days, senior administration officials reportedly sent messages to Iran, through diplomats from two European states, addressing the possibility that Israel would launch a unilateral strike and establishing that the US expects Iran to not draw it into a conflict by firing on American army bases and aircraft carriers in the Persian Gulf.

Monday’s report came amid widespread debate over the level of coordination between Israel and the US on halting Iran’s nuclear program, which — despite assurances by US Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro on Sunday that the relationship is as good as ever — appeared to be strained.

While Israel has warned that the Iranians are quickly approaching a potential weapons capability and that the use of force must be seriously considered, the US says sanctions and international diplomacy must be given more time to work.

Highlighting the disagreement between the two countries on the use of force were reports of a scaling-down of joint US-Israel missile defense exercises in October, and public comments by the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin Dempsey, who said last Thursday that he did not want to be “complicit” in an Israeli attack on Iran. more

Democrats Drop 'God' From Party Platform (Perhaps God will leave the Democrats out of His?)

Guess what? God’s name has been removed from the Democratic National Committee platform.

This is the paragraph that was in the 2008 platform:

“We need a government that stands up for the hopes, values, and interests of working people, and gives everyone willing to work hard the chance to make the most of their God-given potential.”

Now the words “God-given” have been removed. The paragraph has been restructured to say this:

“We gather to reclaim the basic bargain that built the largest middle class and the most prosperous nation on Earth – the simple principle that in America, hard work should pay off, responsibility should be rewarded, and each one of us should be able to go as far as our talent and drive take us.” more

$16,015,769,788,215.80

The United States Treasury reports that the total public outstanding debt is: $16,015,769,788,215.80. This is the first time in American history debt has eclipsed the $16 trillion mark.

The debt has increased approximately $5.4 trillion since President Obama took office on January 20, 2009. more

37 penguins rescued from Seli One oil spill‎, South Africa

The Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB) will remain on high alert as the number of penguins affected by an oil spill from the stricken bulk carrier, the Seli One, at Dolphin Beach,Cape Town, continues to increase.

The numbers have increased at a rapid pace as yesterday the count was on just 5. Today at least 37 oiled penguins have already been captured near Robben Island. The birds will be treated at SANCCOB's facility in Table View for the next three weeks.

The Seli One was hit by a storm at Dolphin Beach on Friday, which resulted in a wreckage that leaked the oil. More than a kilometer of the coastline was polluted and the run-off streaks are continuing to spread. The oil is not expected to move further north, but the City of Cape Town has still appealed to the Transport Department to remove the Seli One from the coastline. Read More

Disease claims two lives in Himachal, India

Shimla, Sep 4 — Two people have died in Himachal Pradesh of scrub typhus, a disease caused by the bite of an infected mite, an official said here Tuesday. With these deaths, the toll in the state due to the disease increased to three this year.

"Two people died in the past two days and 30 people have been tested positive for the disease," K.S. Rana, edical superintendent of Shimla's Indira Gandhi Medical Collage and Hospital, told IANS.

He said one of the victims belonged to Chopal area in the interiors of Shimla district, while another belonged to Hamirpur town.

Shimla, Mandi, Solan and Sirmaur are the worst scrub typhus-affected districts. In the last three years, more than 60 people have died of it in the state, health officials said.

Its symptoms are fever, headache, muscle pain, cough and gastroenteritis -- inflammation of the mucous membrane of the stomach and intestines. Read More

Two new suspected Ebola cases reported in Kibaale, Western Uganda

Medical officials in Kibaale district have registered two new suspected Ebola cases.

Gertrude Keneema (25) and her four-year child, Tidiya Birungi, were admitted to Kagadi Hospital isolation ward on Sunday afternoon with clinical symptoms similar to those of Ebola.

“They are admitted in an isolation ward at the hospital. They have received medication and they are stable,” the District health officer Dr Dan Kyamanywa told this newspaper on Tuesday.

He says medical experts then carried out investigations to establish whether they had come into contact with an Ebola patient.

“They do not have that history,” Dr Kyamanywa said.

The patients are residents of Kabuga LCI, Nyamacumu parish in Muhorro sub-county. Dr Kyamanywa says the two had fever, and were vomiting as well as passing blood.

“We extracted a blood sample from them and sent it to the Uganda virus research institute for testing” Kyamanywa added.

The results had not been returned by press time. Source

Bulgaria: Stolen device containing radioactive element found

Sofia. The device containing a radioactive element, which was stolen earlier today from a construction site in Bulgaria’s capital Sofia, was found. 

The device was not dismantled and it poses no risks for the population, the press office of the Interior Ministry announced for FOCUS News Agency.

Authorities received a signal about device’s location at around 8 p.m. and police officers responded immediately.

The gamma flaw detector was found without any damages. No radioactive irradiation was detected. The device was transported to a safe place. Source

5.1 Magnitude Earthquake TAIWAN REGION - 4th September 2012

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake has struck the TAIWAN REGION at a depth of 18.2 km (11.3 miles), the quake hit at 20:00:18 UTC Tuesday 4th September 2012
The epicenter was 56 km (35 miles) South from T'ai-tung, Taiwan
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time new

Britons Warned After Spate Of Sea Drownings

Holidaymakers are being warned of the risks posed by strong currents after a series of drowning accidents in the UK and abroad.

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) has highlighted the dangers of rip currents, which account for 40% of environmental-related incidents their crews respond to each year.

Twelve Britons - including seven children - have drowned in the last month alone.

Rip currents are fast-moving channels of water pushing swimmers out to sea and beyond their depth. The fastest rips can drag victims away at two-and-a-half metres per second.

On Monday afternoon a mother in her 50s drowned after being swept out to sea when she went to the rescue of her two sons, aged 11 and 13.

The boys had got into difficulties after being caught by a strong rip current off Northcott Mouth Beach, Cornwall. Read More

Headless Tattoo artist's body found in 16 pieces scattered across Delhi (and police say it was an accident)

The headless body of a tattoo artist has been found cut into at least 16 pieces - but police are insisting his death was an accident.

The body of Paras Bhasin was discovered by railway tracks in Ganesh Nagar in east Delhi, India, and detectives believe he was crushed by a train.

The 23-year-old could only be identified by the tattoo on his arm, which bore the name of his wife.

Mr Bhasin's family believe he was murdered, claiming his wife's relatives had threatened him recently because they had not accepted the marriage.

His mutilated body parts were spread across half a kilometre and, according to the dead man's family, police have yet to recover the head.

Sanjiv Bhasin, the dead man's father, said: 'Three days ago when they threatened to cut my son into pieces, we thought they were just angry and would calm down.' Read More

Julian Assange's celebrity backers set to lose $540,000 bail money as he remains holed up in Ecuador Embassy

Julian Assange’s high profile backers, including socialite Jemima Khan, look set to lose £340,000 they posted for his bail as he remains holed up in the Ecuadorian Embassy, it was revealed today.

The Wikileaks founder breached his bail conditions by seeking political asylum before he was due to be extradited to Sweden to face sexual assault charges.

Today nine high profile backers - including two members of the British aristocracy, a Nobel Prize winner and an academic - were today given a month to argue why they shouldn't hand over the £140,000 they promised on the grounds that he would respect his bail conditions.

They all pledged the money as sureties when Assange was bailed in December 2010 meaning they would only have to hand over the cash if he failed to surrender.

Meanwhile, another handful of celebrities including socialite Jemima Khan, journalist John Pilger, film director Ken Loach, publisher Felix Dennis have already lost the £200,000 they stumped up between them to help free him before he was bailed.

They lost this money at a hearing in July when a judge ordered it to be forfeited. Read More

AntiSec: Hackers have 12 MILLION Apple ID codes they claim were taken from an FBI laptop....Next the FBI will tell us they were tracking a 12 Million Terrorists...why else would they be allowed to have this Data?

Hackers claim to have released more than a million Apple device IDs obtained from the laptop of an FBI employee.

The AntiSec hacking group claims to have over 12 million IDs, known as Unique Device Identifiers, as well as personal information such as user names, device names, notification tokens, cell phone numbers and addresses.

It has released a million of them online - but has removed the most personal data.

The hackers today issued a statement saying: 'During the second week of March 2012, a Dell Vostro notebook, used by Supervisor Special Agent Christopher K. Stangl from FBI Regional Cyber Action Team and New York FBI Office Evidence Response Team was breached using the AtomicReferenceArray vulnerability on Java.

'During the shell session some files were downloaded from his Desktop folder one of them with the name of ”NCFTA_iOS_devices_intel.csv” turned to be a list of 12,367,232 Apple iOS devices including Unique Device Identifiers (UDID), user names, name of device, type of device, Apple Push Notification Service tokens, zipcodes, cellphone numbers, addresses, etc.

'The personal details fields referring to people appears many times empty leaving the whole list incompleted on many parts.

'No other file on the same folder makes mention about this list or its purpose.

It is believed the group published the numbers as it believes the FBI was using the details to track people. Read More

46.7 million Americans now on Food Stamps, a new record (Yes we can!)

Food-stamp use reached a record 46.7 million in June, the government said, as Democrats prepare to nominate President Barack Obama for a second term with the economy as a chief issue in the campaign.

Participation was up 0.4 percent from May and 3.3 percent higher than a year earlier and has remained greater than 46 million all year as the unemployment rate stayed higher than 8 percent. New jobless numbers will be released Sept. 7.

“Unemployment is stubbornly stuck,” making it difficult to significantly reduce the number of food-stamp recipients, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in an interview last month. “While people are going back to work, and there are jobs being added, they aren’t being added at a clip that is as robust as anybody wants.”

Food-stamp spending, which has more than doubled in four years to a record $75.7 billion in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011, is the USDA’s biggest annual expense. Republicans in Congress have criticized the cost of the program, and the House budget plan approved in April sponsored by Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, the party’s vice-presidential nominee, would cut expenses by $33 billion over 10 years. more

Portugal fires: EU funds water-bombing planes

Firefighting aircraft have arrived in Portugal to help tackle scores of forest fires raging across the country.

The four aircraft - two from Spain and two from France - are being funded by the EU.

In another glimmer of hope, Portuguese officials said two major fires had been extinguished on Tuesday.

But nearly 8,000 firefighters remain deployed at more than 280 fires amid a forecast of continuing hot temperatures and strong winds.

The Canadair water-bombing planes arrived on Tuesday in the district of Leiria which had been the scene of one of the worst wildfires, Portuguese media reported.

Portugal asked the EU for four water-dumping aircraft after a helicopter being used in the operations crashed. Read More

Chastised Israel seeks way forward with US over Iran

(Reuters) - Stunned by a rebuke from the United States' top general, Israel is preparing a climbdown strategy in its war of words over Iran's nuclear program, aware that its room for maneuver is shrinking rapidly.

Anxious to prevent any flare-up in the Middle East ahead of November elections, there is also a good chance that U.S. President Barack Obama will provide Israel with enough cover to avoid a loss of face, analysts say.

A burst of bellicose rhetoric over the last month led Western allies to fear that Israel was poised to launch a unilateral strike against Iran in an effort to hobble the Islamic Republic's contested nuclear facilities.

Convinced Iran is seeking the atomic bomb, Israeli leaders have warned of a possible Holocaust if Tehran is not stopped; but the saber-rattling clearly riled Washington, while failing to rally domestic public opinion behind a perilous war. Read More

Opposition leader urges ‘Marshall plan’ for Syria, Germany calls for opposition unity

BERLIN — A Syrian opposition leader called Tuesday for a massive aid program to help rebuild his country after President Bashar Assad’s regime falls, warning that a lack of economic development could open the door to extremism.

A top German official representing donor nations, meanwhile, said Syria’s opposition factions must overcome their current divisions.

Abdelbaset Sieda, the head of the Syrian National Council, told a meeting of Syrian opposition representatives and diplomats that Syria would need a program similar to the Marshall Plan, the post-World War II European reconstruction effort, if the Assad regime collapses.

He said Assad’s regime has devastated public finances and institutions to such an extent that Syria won’t be able to rely immediately — or solely — on oil revenues and taxes in any rebuilding effort.

“In the aftermath of the destruction ... we are convinced Syria needs a Marshall-style plan to ensure it stands again on solid financial and economic ground,” Sieda said in Berlin. “Without real comprehensive development, we will open up the opportunity for the growth of all kinds of extremism.” Read More

42 killed in Morocco's worst-ever bus crash

RABAT — A bus plunged into a ravine in the Atlas mountains of southern Morocco early on Tuesday killing at least 42 people, a security official said, in the worst such accident recorded in the kingdom.

All the victims were Moroccan, a local official told AFP. "But we are still in the process of identifying the bodies, as well as the injured," he said.

The accident took place at around 2:00 am (0100 GMT) when the vehicle fell off a main road in Haouz province, around 100 kilometres (60 miles) south of Marrakesh, one of Morocco's top tourist destinations.

The crash also left some 25 people injured, who were taken to different hospitals in the region, according to the local official.

The official MAP news agency, which said the bus fell 150 metres (165 yards) gave the same death toll of 42, saying that five of the victims died in hospital, and that 24 people were injured in the crash, four of them critically. Read More

Jeremy Hunt promoted despite lingering uncertainty over Leveson verdict

Jeremy Hunt was rewarded with a promotion to health secretary in the reshuffle, despite his future still being clouded by the Leveson inquiry into press ethics.

The move is a significant boost for the former culture secretary whose political career seemed to be hanging by a thread only a few months ago over the phone hacking scandal.

The promotion has come despite Mr Hunt’s nervous wait for the results of Lord Leveson’s initial inquiry - due next month - into press standards and ethics.

Mr Hunt came under intense pressure in April after his close contacts with Rupert Murdoch's media empire while he was considering its BSkyB takeover bid emerged in evidence to the Leveson inquiry. Read More

Herman van Rompuy (EU President) Announces how they will save the EU

Watch out for stormy euro zone September

Sept. 4 - The euro zone is entering one of the most nail-biting months since the debt crisis began. A guide to the pivotal dates that could determine the bloc's future.

Spain's Rajoy to seek German backing for a bailout

(Reuters) - Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's eight months in power have been tumultuous from the start but September and October may be even tougher, with the Spanish leader assailed on all sides.

Internationally he is caught between diverging pressures from Germany and France, and at home he faces protests over spending cuts sought by the euro zone's big powers.

France wants Rajoy to request an international bailout to prop up Spanish finances and stop the debt crisis deepening.

But he is unwilling to ask for aid until he is sure of support from euro zone paymaster Germany which he will seek on Thursday at a meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel.

"The worst thing that could happen is Spain asks for aid and Germany blocks it," said a senior European diplomat. Read More

5.5 Magnitude Earthquake PHILIPPINE ISLANDS REGION - 4th September 2012

A magnitude 5.5 earthquake has struck the PHILIPPINE ISLANDS REGION at a depth of 30 km (18.6 miles), the quake hit at 15:11:12 UTC Tuesday 4th September 2012
The epicenter was 117 km (73 miles) ESE from Guiuan, Samar, Philippines
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time new

5.3 Magnitude Earthquake PHILIPPINE ISLANDS REGION - 4th September 2012

A magnitude 5.3 earthquake has struck the PHILIPPINE ISLANDS REGION at a depth of 21.9 km (13.6 miles), the quake hit at 14:43:17 UTC Tuesday 4th September 2012
The epicenter was 105 km (65 miles) ENE of San Isidro, Philippines
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time new

5.2 Magnitude Earthquake SOUTH OF JAVA, INDONESIA - 4th September 2012

A magnitude 5.2 earthquake has struck SOUTH OF JAVA, INDONESIA at a depth of 22 km (13.7 miles), the quake hit at 13:31:05 UTC Tuesday 4th September 2012
The epicenter was 237 km (147 miles) South of Sidorukun, Indonesia
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

4.7 Magnitude Earthquake SOUTH OF JAVA, INDONESIA - 4th September 2012

A magnitude 4.7 earthquake has struck SOUTH OF JAVA, INDONESIA at a depth of 18.1 km (11.2 miles), the quake hit at 12:49:06 UTC Tuesday 4th September 2012
The epicenter was 262 km (162 miles) South of Sidorukun, Indonesia
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

Israeli Settlers 'Desecrate Christian Monastery'

Israeli police are investigating after vandals attacked a famous Christian monastery - setting fire to its door and spray-painting "Jesus is a monkey" on the wall.

The Latrun Monastery, on occupied land in the Ayalon Valley, 15 miles west of Jerusalem, was daubed with pro-settler graffiti.

Officers believe it was in possible retaliation for the eviction of 50 families from the nearby unauthorised Migron settlement on Sunday.

Migron, near the West Bank city of Ramallah, was cleared after an Israeli court ruled it had been illegally built on Palestinian land.

The settlers left the area quietly and moved to temporary housing at another settlement, but eight youths who protested were arrested.

Police were warning of possible reprisal attacks from a vigilante settler group known as Price Tag. The group says its name refers to the price to be paid for stopping settlement in the occupied West Bank.

They have targeted mosques and, less commonly, Christian churches in the past.

Father Paul Saouma, the monastery's abbot, looked dazed as he inspected the damage. "Not nice. What can I say? What can I say?" he said. Read More

If Israel attacks Iran, US Mid East bases will pay dear – Nasrallah

Cutting through the US-Israeli debate over where to put “red lines” for Iran, Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah said Monday night, Sept. 3 that Iran would hit US bases in the Middle East in response to any Israeli strike on its nuclear facilities, even if the Americans were not involved in the attack.

Earlier Monday, the New York Times reported on the debate in the White House over whether US President Barack Obama should declare “red lines” for Iran beyond which the US would act, in response to Israel’s complaint that he has been too vague about how far Iran will be allowed to go.

But even if Obama did set a clear red line now, the NYT admits its credibility would be questionable: “The US and its allies have allowed Iran to cross seven previous red lines in 18 years."

The statement by the top US soldier, Gen. Martin Dempsey, last Thursday that America did not “want to be complicit” in an Israeli attack on Iran was interpreted by the prime movers as meaning that US-Israeli discussions in the last two weeks on where to put the "red lines" were at an impasse.

In an attempt to contain the fallout from the Dempsey comment and put the dialogue back on track, the White House is sending CIA director David Petraeus to Jerusalem for more “red line” palaver with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak. more

Fears Rising, Spaniards Pull Out Their Cash and Get Out of Spain

It is, Julio Vildosola concedes, a very big bet.

After working six years as a senior executive for a multinational payroll-processing company in Barcelona, Spain, Mr. Vildosola is cutting his professional and financial ties with his troubled homeland. He has moved his family to a village near Cambridge, England, where he will take the reins at a small software company, and he has transferred his savings from Spanish banks to British banks.

“The macro situation in Spain is getting worse and worse,” Mr. Vildosola, 38, said last week just hours before boarding a plane to London with his wife and two small children. “There is just too much risk. Spain is going to be next after Greece, and I just don’t want to end up holding devalued pesetas.”

Mr. Vildosola is among many who worry that Spain’s economic tailspin could eventually force the country’s withdrawal from the euro and a return to its former currency, the peseta. That dire outcome is still considered a long shot, even if Spain might eventually require a Greek-style bailout. But there is no doubt that many of those in a position to do so are taking their money — and in some cases themselves — out of Spain. more

5.1 Magnitude Earthquake SOUTH OF JAVA, INDONESIA - 4th September 2012

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake has struck SOUTH OF JAVA, INDONESIA at a depth of 29.5 km (18.3 miles), the quake hit at 12:07:29 UTC Tuesday 4th September 2012
The epicenter was 284 km (177 miles) Southwest from Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time