PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (AP) — Scientists in Trinidad and Tobago are monitoring a noticeable change in coastal elevation following a series of powerful earthquakes in nearby Venezuela, with preliminary assessments indicating that sections of the southern coastline may have risen by as much as several feet. Local geological agencies say the shift was detected through early field measurements and satellite data in the days following the seismic activity.

Geoscientists attribute the change to tectonic movement along regional fault systems linked to the Venezuelan earthquake sequence. Officials from the University of the West Indies Seismic Research Centre and other monitoring bodies have stated that while the uplift is unusual in scale, it is not currently considered a direct hazard to public safety. They added that such adjustments can occur when large earthquakes redistribute stress across connected geological plates.