Posted on 09/28/2004 10:19:29 AM PDT by Drago
Just felt a quake here in the Fresno area...
Changes in atmospheric pressure have no effect on the parts of the earth where earthquakes begin. There is no such thing as "earthquake weather."
P.S. Berkland is a fraud.
A few years ago I worked on an environmental impact report in which I had to assess tsunami potential from offshore earthquakes. The event in the Pacific northwest which caused a tsunami, which effects can be measured still, and that was recorded in the coasts of the western Pacific (China, Japan), was a topic of research at the time. I do not recall an estimated magnitude that large for that 1700's event.
The size if the earthquake, in terms of magnitude, does not necessarily relate to the tsunami generated. There is good evidence that a number of large tsunamis have been spawned by submarine landslides on the continental shelf/slope, which sometimes occur hours after the initial shaking event. If you are interested in tsunamis of this type, do a google search on the "Scotch Cap" (not "cape") Lighthouse, formerly located in the Aleutian Islands, which was destroyed by a 100+ ft tsunami.
Please refer to: http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/triangle.asp
The first thing you must realize is that building codes in the United States, and especially in California, are significantly different from those in the Middle East or Mexico. Most buildings in the United States are wood frame or steel frame construction. In the Middle East, unreinforced masonry is the standard, especially in the poorer rural ares. Wood frame and unreinforced masonry react differently during prolonged shaking.
A typical wood frame home or apartment will "flex" during an earthquake. In severe shaking the structure will suffer exterior and cosmetic damage (broken plaster, cracks, fallen chimneys, etc), but the structure will by-in-large, withstand the shaking. I have seen a wood frame home that was located on the fault trace of a large quake, where vertical offset tilted the home. Although it was a total loss for insurance purposes, the frame structure remained intact.
Desks, tables, and the like are also structurally strong. They can hold many times their own weight. The most likely source of injury in an earthquakes is from broken glass and objects falling on the victims. By ducking and covering, especially under a desk (as a student would in class), or under a nearby table, will help protect a person from further injury. The chance of a collapse of a typical wood frame structure is so small, that your suggestions are of little consequence from a safety standpoint.
Door jambs are small, strong structures. They rarely have any direct relationship with a ceiling. Your statement that people in door jambs get killed when a building collapses is a non-sensical statement. If a building does collapse, one's location in the building is of little relationship to death. (This was proved by a study done by the State of California after the Northridge earthquake. Door jambs and bearing walls often buttressed the effects of a collapse of non-bearing walls.) The reason I do not suggest that people take "cover" in a door jamb is because of the swinging door and the injuries it might causes to fingers and faces. But if you are in one when a quake strikes, stay there and brace yourself as best as possible.
The suggestion to get away from a building during an earthquake is a killer! Cosmetic brickwork, roof tiles, chimneys, and other exterior structures pose a greater threat to someone running from a building, than do the interior fixtures.
The observations about the Nimitz freeway collapse and the lack of survivors in crushed automobiles is factually incorrect. First, there are few, if any other structures like the old double-decked Nimitz freeway. If someone took your suggestion of exiting their vehicle on a freeway during an earthquake, the likely result would be that they would be struck by another vehicle. That was about the stupidest thing I have ever read regarding earthquake safety.
Copp's suggestions are controversial and are not supported by any of the major emergency action agencies.
Thanks
Felt it all the way in Kuwait, almost dropped my scotch.
These insane people naturally vote Democrat, because they share the same deluded view of the world and also regularly suspend their belief in reality to ignore threats to their lives and health. They are offended by Republicans because our normalcy forces them to realize how nuts they actually are ;-)
Aha! So there's the first reality suspension -- "we could all die in a quake". Cuts across the board. Then there's terrorists. Repubs choose to deal with it; Dems go into fetal mode. Is this it?
Shazaam! And that's why the Bay Bridge is still not fully repaired (from quake in 1987) and costing Bay Area in order of 5bill in overrruns.. and because Unions are all Democrats, and the thinking is... "Another one's gonna happen.. let's just keep the contract open"? :)
Aha, yes... Santa Rosa. Used to be a such a lovely Grandma place, just north of where I lived. And now? Ever read "The Woman's Room" by xx French? It was considered a "feminist" breakthrough. I read it; bored out of my mind. It reads in tone like one of John Kerry's campaign speeches. At a concert once, the ladies room was overrun with dykes, and I really had to go. I ended up using the Men's room. And the guys were so polite; I explained my predicament; they all nodded in accord vigorously -- they too did not want to deal with North CA dykes. They cleared the men's room just for me! I was quick, and I thanked them profusely for their gentlemanly ways. This was in SF at a rock concert. Hopefully you found an alternative to peeing in your shoe.
Frankly, it doesn't make much sense to me to make taxpayers pay for property damages for those who live in a known "destructo" zone. However, it doesn't make much sense for a Presidential candidate to make these announcements while major parts of Florida are being destroyed by storms. Insult to injury: And he wants to win FLA?
Thanks! What you posted, makes perfect sense. The old adage was to get under a desk; inside a door frame. Perhaps this was due the construction at that time? Triangle of space. Again, this makes perfect sense. When Oakland Overpasses fell in 1987 quake -- anyone outside their cars (in space) stood a much better chance of survival.
Hmm... most injuries do result from flying debris...
I just read that the epicenter of the 06 shake was near the Mendocino Humboldt line
"What a great post" BUMP!
Yes. I felt one aftershock at 10:10.
Thanks for that. That's great information, and little-known. I am copying it to send to daughters in Seattle and San Diego.
Another way of classifying an earthquake is by the seismic energy released. Frankly, I am not familiar with that method. When I first worked out magnitudes, they were done by hand by estimating the length of rupture, measuring the highest amplitude on the seismograph, measuring the duration of the shaking, etc. It's all done instantly today by computer algorithms, and the more reporting stations the better.
I would again caution against using tsunami evidence to back-calculate the size of the earthquake (if any) that spawned a particular tsunami. One of the largest tsunamis for which evidence exists (tsunmai deposits at unusual elevations along the coast of South America) have been related by some credible researchers to the sloughing off of the east half of the island of Maui. Such an event of mass wasting would be comparable to a wave caused by a very fat man doing a cannonball into a kiddie pool. ;^)
I'll have to round up my atlas or go out to the car to get a state map. What's the reference?
ANOTHER earthquake, just outside of Bakersfield: 5.0.
moved pool waters in T O 91362
moved pool waters in T O 91362
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