Earthquakes...

[Jorden]

First we had El Salvador being hit by a major 7.6 earthquake, with about 800 people dead.

Last night India was struck by a 7.9 quake. 1500 dead, of whom 700 confirmed, couple of thousands injured.

One wonders when California will be hit again. Not that I would like that to happen to Paulcs, Dimitri and everyone else (who visits here as well), living there.

Stock up on batteries, guys.

Jord.

[The PIT]

It was 6.9 if it was 7.9 the situ would be even worse although thats not much compensation for the poeple involved may they have my sympathies.
Out of interest Mt fuji is shaking a little above normal theres just one to three tremors a month now these are up to the hundreds. Is this mountain going to erupt for the first time since 1707?

[This message has been edited by The PIT (edited 26 January 2001).]

[This message has been edited by The PIT (edited 26 January 2001).]

[Jorden]

quoted from CNN.com:

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">More than 1,700 killed in India quake; fear of aftershocks spreads

Fear gripped the Gujarat state of western India today, triggered by aftershocks from a 7.9 magnitude earthquake that killed at least 1,792, injured thousands, derailed trains and caused widespread power blackouts.
</font>

It was the biggest earthquake in India since they started measuring them. Also on the 50th anniversary of their Freedom, so many of the victims were celebrating !!



[This message has been edited by Jorden (edited 26 January 2001).]

[The PIT]

On our teletext and BBC news I doubled checked before I posted and again they quote 6.9. Anyway my orginal post was mean't not to quibble about the numbers. For the poeple involved numbers don't mean much. They have suffered and my sympathy is with them.
At the moment we're living on so many time bombs yellowstone park (The big one) Vesuvios Krakatoa for example.
Vesuvio hasn't erupted since 1944 and could go on sleeping for another 150 years or more. Since theres no modern data no one can predict the how the Volcano would behave if it came active now. I.e how much notice they would get.
If Vesuvio did an AD 79 tomorrow how many would lose there lives.

[Jorden]

True, TP. On all accounts.

If anyone on these fori has family in India, I hope for you that he/she/them is/are alright !!

Jord.

[Wombat]

Actually, according to NPR, Ohio was hit too. I think it was a 5 or 6.

[The PIT]

Going back to Vesuvio.
If I remember correctly the acivation plan of Naples depends on five day notice. If I again remember correctly. I can remember an interview ( On British Tv ) with young lady from the volcanoists monitoring the volcano saying very carefully they wouldn't be able to give this notice.
Happy to be corrected on this.

[Jorden]

Let's just say that no-one can predict an earthquake or volcano outburst to any day, TP.
With the Vesuvio, I think that even with a 5 day warning no-one can evacuate Napels !!

[agallag]

Cleveland was hit with a measly 4.4 quake last night. Apparently it was felt up here in toronto, but I didn't feel a thing.

------------------
Andrew
Carpe Cerevisi

[Sasq]

my students at school tell me the local scientists say Tokyo is due for a BIG earth quake in the next 2 years... I read somewhere as Tokyo is on the convergence of *3* plates and due to the activity we receive 10% of the worlds earthquakes, a week doesn't go by without feeling a tremor.

And no familiarity hasn't bred contempt

Danny

[paulcs]

I was born and raised in New York City and have trouble distinguishing most earthquakes from a bus or truck going by. However, I was once jarred from a deep sleep by an earthquake. Bouncing all over the bed, I immediately made an association with the film, The Exorcist. "HOLY SH*T, IT'S CAPTAIN HOWDY!!," I thought.

Then I remembered I had moved to California.

Each time I hear a report about a major earthquake anywhere in the world, I'm reminded about how poor a job I've done preparing for the inevitable. I haven't gotten around to buying can goods or bottled water or ridiculous amounts of liquor to get me through the days of no TV, restaurants, or Internet.

I think about our obsession with building highways in the sky, despite the fact that they tend to fall down during big earthquakes. I think about how nearly everyone agrees that the Bay Bridge will fall into the Bay during the next "Big One." And, of course, I think about our nuclear power plants, which we built on active faults. (Nobody wants to live on a fault; few people want to live near a nuclear power plant. It's the perfect California solution. Shake and bake. )

One tends to develop a gallows sense of humor when living in an earthquake zone.

Paul
paulcs@flashcom.net

[Joel]

Does anyone remember Mt. St. Helens?





Joel

[The PIT]

Certainly do theres even more dangerous Volcanos around Mt Rainer for example. Quite a bit of the rock has been altered by gases into clay and parts of this volcano can collaspe without even fresh magmatic intrusion.

[Jorden]

Expected over 15.000 dead. Not even in the second World War did so many people perish on one day !!

I hope sincerely that San Fransisco spared this time !!

[rylan]

paulcs: I hate to tell ya about this one.. but there are a few _large_ dams in California that are build on top of major fault lines. Thats why there was a river there, and some jackass decided to dam it up. Well, its also a slip fault, so when if goes, part of the dam is going to move one way, while the other half will be trying to move the opposite = massive amount of sheering force (which is where concrete is week) = buste dam = massive wall of water heading for SanFran bay.

Some interesting things you learn in a geology course...