“Earthquakes”

(PART FIVE)

A rolling terror hides under the earth in the New Madrid Fault Zone area, and sooner or later, it will be unleashed.

The highest earthquake risk in the United States , outside of the west coast, is along the New Madrid Fault Zone. Damaging tremors are not as frequent as on the west coast, but, due to the unconsolidated soil conditions and other geology, when an earthquake does occur the destruction will cover 20 times more area.

Earthquakes are one of Natures most common events, and there are approximately 8000 recorded earthquakes around the world every day. An earthquake is a sudden slipping or movement of a portion of the earths crust, caused by a sudden release of stress usually less than 25 miles below the surface. During the month of June 2006 there were 27 recorded earthquakes in the New Madrid Fault zone. These quakes ranged from 1.0 up to 3.5. Did anyone feel any of these?

Robin Norris, AD5JA sent me the following news paper article dated this morning and I would like to share it with you. (07-03-06)

Quake expert warns residents to prepare in case of disaster
PARAGOULD -- The sky isn't falling and earth isn't crumbling, but it could any day, according to Gary Patterson. Gary is the information services director for the University of Memphis ’ Center for Earthquake Research and Information.

"I'm not here to sound like Chicken Little," said Patterson. "It could happen tomorrow or it could happen in 400 years," but when it does hit it will "go off big and go off in sequences."

The Center of Earthquake Research and Information specializes in the New Madrid Seismic Zone, which is different from other seismic zones across the country or the world. "This is a weird seismic zone," Patterson said. One of the biggest concerns among seismologists is how do earthquakes happen, what causes them?

"Here, we don't know how the system works here," he said. "In California they have a good idea of what's going on. Here we don't know."

In California two tectonic plates are grinding together, which occasionally causes an earthquake.

The New Madrid seismic zone is a different kind of geological anomaly. It's not a plate boundary, and "There's a lot of uncertainty," he added.

It doesn't take a big one to do a lot of damage. In fact, there is a 25 percent chance that a magnitude 6.0 earthquake will occur within a 50-year window, while the chances of a larger, more catastrophic earthquake are 10 percent within a 50-year window, Patterson said.

"We don't know when they'll happen exactly, but we do know that they will continue to occur".

Earthquakes tend to occur less frequently in the New Madrid seismic zones, but when they do happen, they tend to go off in sequences and affect a larger area. "You don't see this anywhere else, the massive 'felt' area," he said. In fact, a 6.0 earthquake in California would not have nearly the impact of a 6.0 quake here. The same size earthquake along the New Madrid seismic zone would affect a several-state area and have a much broader area of substantial damage.

The information services director's best advice is to have a plan. Earthquakes happen without any warning, Patterson said.

"There's no time to be scared".

Where to go

In structures with a chimney, that's the first thing to go, Patterson said. He suggested that people move away from the chimney, and people who are indoors should stay there. Many injuries sustained from earthquakes happen because people leaving buildings are struck by falling debris, Patterson said.

Unreinforced masonry is another aspect of architecture that doesn't do well in earthquakes, he said.

Patterson also pointed to the importance of having provisions readily available. If a large scale earthquake occurs, Northeast Arkansas won't be able to call Little Rock for assistance and supplies. Emergency service personnel will have to call on their counterparts in places such as Nebraska and Oklahoma , he said.

He applauded Arkansas -- Blytheville specifically -- for its efforts in preparing for "the big one."

Approximately 40 percent of the natural gas lines that feed the New England states run through the New Madrid seismic zone, he said.

"It's not a Memphis problem. It's not a Paragould problem. It's a regional problem."  (END)

Emergency Management Officials are now saying that the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina should be a lesson for all of us. For days following a large earthquake, many people will have to fend for themselves. Evacuation to safe locations is not going to be an option before earthquakes, because they are unpredictable. And leaving the zone of destruction afterward could be difficult, if not impossible. Roads and bridges may be destroyed or impassable because of debris. These conditions would also mean that help coming into your area may not be able to for days.

Is the average citizen ready for an earthquake of a high intensity, the honest answer to this of course is NO! So, everyone who lives in or near the New Madrid Fault Zone needs to be prepared to function without a major government cavalry charge for at least 72 hours and possibly for up to a week or longer. These preparations should include water, food, and plans for shelter if left homeless. Preparations should also include medications, communications, portable AM/FM radios, flashlights, extra batteries and a first aid kit. You always hope you never need them, but the day you don't have them is the day you need them.

As ARES/RACES members we need to be fully prepared for the day when the Big One will come. Communications is going to be a premium resource that will be needed for weeks. Are we at this time fully prepared for a disaster that a magnitude 6.0 or larger earthquake could cause. Personally, I can not even imagine all of the resources it would take from us and all of the others who would be involved to be fully prepared. However, the two things that I believe we all do know, is that we will need training in order to do our jobs as professional communicators and there is the preparation of our equipment, supplies such as food, water, food preparation items, shelter, medical supplies, family plans and drills, home safety and a way to keep informed of the events that will follow the initial quake.

Tom Harris, k5wth