Italy, a Land of Earthquakes, Works to Protect the Priceless From the Unexpected

CARPENEDA DI VOBARNO, Italy-When the earth trembled in Assisi 10 years ago, toppling frescoed sections of the vault of the Basilica of St. Francis, the world took notice.Yet earthquakes are common in Italy. In the last year alone 491 events registered 2.5 or higher on the Richter scale, meaning they could be felt, even if they did not necessarily cause damage.Now Italy’s Culture Ministry has implemented guidelines that it hopes will mitigate the threat that earthquakes pose to the country’s artistic heritage.“Italy’s patrimony has been lost because we used to intervene after the fact and not before,” said Roberto Cecchi, general director of the Architectural Heritage and Landscape Department, which is responsible for the safekeeping of Italy’s monuments.Under the new guidelines unveiled this summer, officials at the local and national levels are to evaluate the seismic risk to individual structures in their jurisdictions and take steps to reduce the vulnerability. These steps could include using steel chains to join the walls together, or employing carbon fiber strips in the walls and the vaulting as a sort of flexible bandage“The idea is to see a structure as a sort of box that is more resistant if the vertical and the horizontal elements work together,” said Laura Moro, an architect at the Culture Ministry. “In a seismic area sooner or later something will happen. The problem is that for years this issue was totally ignored.”The residents of this town on the shore of Lake Garda-in northern Italy, between Venice and Milan-realized that a minute before midnight on Nov. 24, 2004, when an earthquake registering 5.2 damaged hundreds of buildings. Since then Mauro Biasin, an architect, has been overseeing the restoration of nearly 300 damaged churches and monasteries. Many are still closed and carry signs saying, “Closed because of earthquake damage.” There were no deaths, but Mr. Biasin points out that had it struck exactly one month later, the churches would have been filled for Christmas Eve.The church of Santa Margherita di Scozia in Carpeneda di Vobarno above Lake Garda was built in 1949, just a few years before anti-earthquake construction regulations went into effect. The 2004 earthquake detached the facade and opened gaping cracks on the triumphal arch as well as minor cracks above the windows. It also loosened and rotated beams, Mr. Biasin said....

To read more go to:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/04/arts/design/04quak.html

As in the days of Noah...

Earthquakes above 6.0 in 2007

2007 01 13 - East of the Kuril Islands - M 8.1
2007 04 01 - Solomon Islands - M 8.1
2007 01 21 - Molucca Sea - M 7.5
2007 01 30 - West of Macquarie Island - M 6.8
2007 03 25 - Vanuatu - M 7.1
2007 07 16 - Sea of Japan - M 6.8
2007 06 28 - Bougainville Region, Papua New Guinea - M 6.7
2007 06 13 - Offshore Guatemala - M 6.7
2007 03 25 - Near the West Coast of Honshu,Japan - M 6.7
2007 07 16 - Near the west coast of Honshu, Japan - M 6.6
2007 01 31 - Kermadec Islands, New Zealand - M 6.5
2007 03 06 - Southern Sumatra, Indonesia - M 6.4
21-JUL-2007 - JUJUY PROVINCE, ARGENTINA - M 6.2
21-JUL-2007 - Western Brazil - M 6.2
17-JUL-2007 - Tanzania - M 6.0
15-JUL-2007 - Aleutian Islands, Alaska - M 6.1
15-JUL-2007 - Vanuatu Islands - M 6.3
12-JUL-2007 - Peru / Brazil Border - M 6.1
06-JUL-2007 - Chiapas, Mexico - M 6.1
28-JUN-2007 - Solomon Islands - M 6.7
26-JUN-2007 - Jawa, Indonesia - M 6.0
http://www.divulgence.net
As in the days of Noah....

QUAKES DAILY....

*GULF OF CALIFORNIA
1 Sep 2007 19:14:30 UTC
Magnitude:6.3 Mw
*GULF OF CALIFORNIA
1 Sep 2007 23:35:23 UTC
Magnitude:4.7Mb
*GULF OF CALIFORNIA
1 Sep 2007 23:39:59 UTC
Magnitude:4.1Mb
*NEAR COAST OF NICARAGUA
2 Sep 2007 00:07:29 UTC
Magnitude:4.9Mb
*SALTA, ARGENTINA
2 Sep 2007 00:14:37 UTC
Magnitude:4.5Mb
*SANTA CRUZ ISLANDS
2 Sep 2007 01:05:32 UTC
Magnitude:6.9Mw
*GULF OF CALIFORNIA
2 Sep 2007 05:07:10 UTC
Magnitude:4.6Mb
*GULF OF CALIFORNIA
2 Sep 2007 11:04:47 UTC
Magnitude:4.8Mb
As in the days of Noah.....

Deadliest Earthquakes in History

Tsunamis and fires have contributed to some of the largest death tolls in earthquakes. Here are the most notable known earthquake events, based on the number of deaths. Both deaths and magnitudes, when show, are estimates.
http://www.livescience.com/environment/deadliest_earthquakes.html

As in the days of Noah....

New Data Confirms Strong Earthquake Risk to Central U.S.-PART Two

Repeating history
In a three-month period in 1811-12, three major earthquakes rattled a broad expanse of the United States, causing damage as far away as Charleston, South Carolina and even rattling nerves in Boston. The quakes triggered landslides into the Mississippi River and, according to some boaters who were not drowned, sent part of the river running the other direction for a time.The earthquakes were centered around New Madrid, Missouri. They measured 8.1, 8.0 and 7.8 and represent three of the four strongest earthquakes ever recorded in the lower 48 states.Over the past 12 years, geologists have found evidence for other prehistoric calamities along the New Madrid fault. Sandy soil in some areas became liquefied in past events, leaving telltale "sandblows" when the material was squished. The sandblows indicate that three or possibly four earthquakes of magnitude 7.6 or better struck the region in the past 2,000 years, in addition to the incredible series of three in the early 1800s.
Strange movement
The new data show the ground indeed moves a few millimeters each year near the fault, as most geologists had expected. But away from the fault, the movement was discovered to be less. Ellis and his colleagues, including study leader Bob Smalley, speculate that well below the surface, the fault was displaced by the 1811-12 events and that shift is still, slowly, propagating upward.Ellis cautioned, however, that more data is needed to figure out whatÕs going on.Unlike California, the slow shift around New Madrid is not "Ultimately the movement is driven by plate tectonics, with the North American plate moving generally westward," says Martitia Tuttle, a geologist at M. Tuttle & Associates who was not involved in the new research.Most scientists think the New Madrid fault is part of an ancient system of rifts embedded in the plate."The old rift system is a zone of weakness and therefore is more prone to failure, resulting in earthquakes, than surrounding regions," Tuttle told LiveScience.The new study provides "scientific justification for the adoption of stricter earthquake provisions in the building codes for Memphis and other cities in the central United States," Tuttle said.The results, and an analysis by Tuttle, are published in the June 23 issue of the journal Nature.
Sooner or later ...
The findings contradict a study in the 1990s, based on less data, that concluded the ground was not shifting and so strain buildup was minimal. Since that controversial work, scientists have debated the prevailing view that more major earthquakes are likely."Our results confirm the current status of seismic hazard ... that says that the likelihood of another 1811-12 earthquake in the next 50 years is between 7 and 10 percent," Ellis said in an email interview.The chances of a smaller but still devastating temblor are higher.Strong earthquakes in the New Madrid seismic zone are certain to occur in the future," states a fact sheet from the U.S. Geological Survey. "There is a 9-in-10 chance of a magnitude 6 to 7 temblor occurring in the New Madrid Seismic Zone within the next 50 years."The new monitoring system around the New Madrid fault should eventually allow geologists to refine their predictions. "Folks out west, California in particular, are much further ahead than are we," Ellis said. "They have more data, more instrumentation, and a simpler tectonic environment. Our results though will begin to constrain the set of reasonable theoretical models for the generation of midplate earthquakes, and that's the beginning of making better forecasts."
http://www.livescience.com/

As in the days of Noah....

Today in Earthquake History....

Today's Earthquake Fact: The greatest mountain range is the Mid-Ocean Ridge, extending 64,374 km (40,000 miles) from the Arctic Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean, around Africa, Asia, and Australia, and under the Pacific Ocean to the west coast of North America. It has a height of 4207 meters (13,800 feet) above the base ocean depth.

To read the TODAY in EARTHQUAKE History list,go to:

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learning/today/

As in the days of Noah......

Magnitude 4.7 quake shakes SoCal

LAKE ELSINORE, Calif. - A magnitude 4.7 earthquake shook Riverside County on Sunday but no injuries or damage were reported, authorities said.The jolt at 10:29 a.m. was centered near Lake Elsinore, about 50 miles southeast of Los Angeles, the U.S. Geological Survey said. It was felt as far away as San Diego."There was a lot of shaking in the shop for a few seconds. All my co-workers looked at each other and said 'earthquake!'" said Myong Kim, an employee at the Latte Express coffee shop in Lake Elsinore. "It was a little scary but no damage."The quake struck under the Santa Ana Mountains in a remote area of the Cleveland National Forest along a well-known fault that runs from Mexico to Los Angeles.Many aftershocks followed in the next few hours, some as big as magnitude 2.5.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070903/ap_on_re_us/socal_quake_2;_ylt=Ar.cRLaqZ_XllULaxny1QVinZiEB

As in the days of Noah...

Powerful quake strikes near Solomons

HONIARA, Solomon Islands - A powerful earthquake struck deep beneath the ocean floor near the Solomon Islands on Sunday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.No tsunami warning was issued and there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.The USGS measured the quake's preliminary magnitude at 6.9 and said it struck about 60 miles south of the remote Santa Cruz Islands in the South Pacific. The depth was 22 miles beneath the sea floor, it said.
An aftershock measuring magnitude 5.4 hit the area about 90 minutes later, it said.The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the available data suggested there was no danger of a tsunami.Solomon Islands National Disaster Management Office director Loti Yates said initial radio reports from the remote island group indicated there had been "no casualties and minimal if any damage."The Solomons Islands are comprised of more than 200 islands with a population of about 552,000 people. They lie on the Pacific Basin's so-called "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanos and fault lines where quakes are frequent.An April 2 earthquake and tsunami in the Solomons caused widespread destruction on some islands and killed at least 50 people.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070902/ap_on_re_au_an/solomon_islands_earthquake_2
As in the days of Noah....

Earthquake damage closes school

Nearly 1,000 pupils in Kent have had the day off after Saturday's earthquake left school buildings cracked and ceilings in need of inspection.The Harvey Grammar School, in Cheriton Road, Folkestone, had to be closed to allow a safety assessment to be carried out, but will reopen on Tuesday.Shepway District Council said it had received more than 1,000 reports of damage to properties in the town.Most have minor damage, but 40 are too dangerous for families to return to.Five of the families are being put up in hotels, with the rest staying with friends and family.The 4.3 magnitude earthquake struck at 0819 BST on Saturday, with the epicentre 7.5 miles (12km) into the English Channel off the coast of Dover. The damage to the Harvey Grammar School was discovered during an inspection on Sunday.Head teacher Keith Rivers said: "Some brickwork is displaced and there are some cracks in the gabling that are quite large and are going to need repairing."Three classrooms have some damage, and the ceiling is slightly lower than it should be in one room."Many of the unsafe properties in the town have loose chimney stacks, tiles and masonry.Shepway District Council said it had received 1,100 calls to a structural damage helpline by Monday afternoon.

To read more go to:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/kent/6606661.stm

As in the days of Noah....

Ethiopia: Eruption of volcano kills 5

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia - A volcano that erupted for three days last week killed three people and forced the evacuation of 2,000, Ethiopian officials said Wednesday.The remote volcano, which erupted Aug. 12-15 in northern Afar state, also killed nearly 1,400 camels and goats, federal disaster prevention officials told the Ethiopian News Agency.Government officials said they were working to get aid to the evacuees, and they warned any residents still in the area to leave in case of further eruptions.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070822/ap_on_re_af/ethiopia_volcano_1

As in the days of Noah....

Quake will cost insurers millions

Insurers say the damage caused to homes and businesses by the Kent earthquake will cost millions to repair.An earthquake measuring 4.3 on the Richter scale shook hundreds of homes in the Folkestone area on Saturday morning, causing chimneys and masonry to fall and cracks to appear in some properties.Malcolm Tarling, of the Association of British Insurers, said his members were ready to respond."The last serious earthquake that struck Britain in Dudley resulted in a bill of around £15-20 million, so I would estimate that in Folkestone it would run into single figure millions, possibly low tens of millions," he said."But it is not something that would be considered a big deal by insurers as it is exactly the kind of event that they would have planned for."We have had past experiences in this country of bad weather causing widespread damage, more recently the tornado which struck in Kensal Rise in north west London."Earthquakes are considered a natural disaster but so are floods and storms, so people should not be worried about not being covered by their insurance policies."

To read more go to:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6603583.stm

As in the days of Noah...

Earthquakes jolt North Sumatra and East Java

JAKARTA-An earthquake with magnitude of 5.8 shook Thursday North Sumatra, but there were no immediate reports of damage.The Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) published in its website that the earthquake occurred at 06:07 p.m. and was centered 29 kilometers southeast of Sibolga at a depth of 146 kilometers.Another earthquake also jolted East Java city of Blitar with a magnitude of 4.7 earlier Thursday at 01:49 p.m. at a depth 33 kilometers.The earthquake was centered 309 southeast of the city.

http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailgeneral.asp?fileid=20070830190537&irec=12

As in the days of Noah...

Japan holds disaster drills to prepare for big quake

TOKYO-Hundreds of thousands of people took part in disaster drills across Japan on Saturday, with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declaring a mock emergency with a huge quake about to hit the nation. The exercise came a month before Japan introduces an early quake warning system nationwide.The central government held a drill at the prime minister's office, assuming the meteorological agency warns that a massive quake will strike within days."I issue a warning about a quake disaster.This quake is predicted to trigger very strong tremors and massive tsunami waves in wide areas,"Abe, clad in a blue work uniform, said after a mock cabinet meeting. "Tremendous damage is expected...Please be alert, follow instructions from relevant offices and act calmly,"he said in an address to the nation.Japan, which endures about 20 percent of the world's strong earthquakes, still has vivid memories of a 6.8 Richter-scale tremor on July 16 that killed 11 people in the Niigata central region.The nation holds annual drills to commemorate the deadly September 1, 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake, which left more than 140,000 people dead or unaccounted for in and around Tokyo, and prepare for the next big one.The most frequently forecast scenario is one which could devastate the Tokai region from around Mount Fuji in the east to Mie prefecture in the west-including the city which top carmaker Toyota Motors is based in.The July 16 Niigata quake also shut down a sprawling nuclear power plant, causing more than 60 problems including fires and a small amount of radiation leakage.Taking into account possible damage to nuclear facilities, the head of the government's nuclear safety agency joined the day's emergency government meeting for the first time this year.Local governments also held drills on separate disaster scenarios.The Tokyo metropolitan government held a drill in cooperation with US forces, assuming a 7.3-magnitude quake hit the capital.An amphibious ship of the US military was deployed to help people go home after the quake's hypothetical devastation.Central Japan's Shizuoka prefecture, predicted to suffer most in the Tokai quake, held drills involving 270,000 people.Shizuoka Governor Yoshinobu Ishikawa had a video conference with Abe, who was at his office in Tokyo and briefed by the local governor on quake damage.Television footage from across the nation showed scores of citizens relaying buckets containing water in efforts to put out fire and fire fighters chain-sawing collapsed makeshift houses to rescue quake survivors.An estimated 627,000 people took part in exercises across Japan on Saturday, according to Jiji Press news agency.Japan will start sending earthquake warnings to the public on October 1, giving them vital seconds to prepare before one of the country's frequent tremors strikes.The system made its debut earlier this year but so far has been confined to major businesses and public utilities. From October, the alerts will also be sent out via radio, television or public loudspeakers, which are commonplace in Japan.The system can predict earthquakes seconds before they strike, prompting companies to develop a growing number of gadgets to alert people to an impending tremor.The system works by detecting the first underground tremors-the shear waves-which come before more dangerous primary waves.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070901/sc_afp/japandisasterquakedrill_070901075143

As in the days of Noah...

Two feeble quakes hit southwestern Turkey

Two feeble earthquakes measuring 5. 3 and 3.5 on the Richter scale jolted southwestern Turkey but caused no casualties, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported on Saturday.The first quake, which was centered in the Mediterranean Sea about 100 kilometers from Aydin and Mugla provinces, occurred at 23:53 p.m. local time (2053 GMT) on Friday, according to the Istanbul-based Kandilli Observatory and Seismology Institute.The second one measuring 3.5 on the Richter scale took place at 00:48 a.m. on Saturday (2148 GMT on Friday) at the same region.Earthquakes are frequent in Turkey which lies on active fault lines. Two devastating earthquakes in the country in 1999 killed more than 18,000 people.

http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90777/6252764.html

As in the days of Noah....

Global Warming Might Spur Earthquakes and Volcanoes

Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis and landslides are some of the additional catastrophes that climate change and its rising sea levels and melting glaciers could bring, a geologist says.The impact of human-induced global warming on Earth's ice and oceans is already noticeable: Greenland's glaciers are melting at an increasing rate, and sea level rose by a little more than half a foot (0.17 meters) globally in the 20th century, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.With these trends in ice cover and sea level only expected to continue and likely worsen if atmospheric carbon dioxide levels continue to rise, they could alter the stresses and forces fighting for balance in the ground under our feet-changes that are well-documented in studies of past climate change, but which are just beginning to be studied as possible consequences of the current state of global warming."Although they've described it in the past, nobody's thought about it in terms of future effects of climate change,"said Bill McGuire of the University College London's Hazard Research Center.
McGuire's speculations of increased geological activity have not yet been published in a journal, but he has written an article about them published in the Guardian Unlimited.
Rebounding crust
One particular feature that can change the balance of forces in Earth's crust is ice, in the form of glaciers and ice sheets that cover much of the area around Earth's poles plus mountains at all latitudes. The weight of ice depresses the crust on which it sits.As the ice melts, the crust below no longer has anything sitting on top of it, and so can rebound fairly rapidly (by geological standards). (This rebounding is actually occurring now as a result of the end of the last Ice Age: The retreat of massive ice sheets from the northern United States and Canada has allowed the crust in these areas to bounce back.)Areas of rebounding crust could change the stresses acting on earthquake faults and volcanoes in the crust."In places like Iceland, for example, where you have the Eyjafjallajökull ice sheet, which wouldn't survive [global warming], and you've got lots of volcanoes under that, the unloading effect can trigger eruptions," McGuire said.With the changing dynamics in the crust, faults could also be destabilized, which could bring a whole host of other problems."It's not just the volcanoes. Obviously if you load and unload active faults, then you're liable to trigger earthquakes," McGuire told LiveScience, noting that there is ample evidence for this association in past climate change events."At the end of the last Ice Age, there was a great increase in seismicity along the margins of the ice sheets in Scandinavia and places like this, and that triggered these huge submarine landsides which generated tsunamis," McGuire said. "So you've got the whole range of geological hazards there that can result from if we see this big catastrophic melting."Roland Burgmann, a geologist at the University of California, Berkeley, agrees that changes in ice cover can have significant effects on the underlying crust,but says that more research needs to be done to determine the actual scale of the threat and where the effects are most likely to occur.

To read more go to:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20070830/sc_livescience/globalwarmingmightspurearthquakesandvolcanoes


As in the days of Noah...

Japan's Industrial Output Fell in July on Earthquake

Japan's industrial production fell in July after an earthquake disrupted output at automakers Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co.
Production fell a seasonally adjusted 0.4 percent from June, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in a report in Tokyo today. The median estimate of 44 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for a 0.3 percent decline.
Riken Corp., Japan's largest maker of piston rings, shut factories for a week following the July 16 quake, cutting off supplies for automakers and forcing them to temporarily close plants. Bank of Japan board member Atsushi Mizuno said yesterday the fallout from the U.S. subprime-mortgage crisis probably won't have a serious impact on global economic growth."Production will probably rebound this month after the quake but we could see it start to slow,'' Seiji Adachi, a senior economist at Deutsche Securities Inc. in Tokyo, said before the report was released."If U.S. demand slows it's going to be tough for exporters, making it hard for the BOJ to raise rates.''Output would have risen had automakers not dragged the number down 1.2 percentage points, the Trade Ministry said. The yen traded at 115.88 per dollar at 9:40 a.m. in Tokyo from 115.97 before the report was published.

To read more go to:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601101&sid=akjB5CePbUBE

As in the days of Noah...

NEW YORK:Saranac Lake: Minor Earthquake in the Adirondacks

A minor earthquake shook the Adirondack Mountains on Wednesday night. The magnitude 3.2 temblor happened just before midnight. Its epicenter was about eight miles northeast of Tupper Lake, according to the United States Geological Survey. “It sounded lke a sonic boom,” Bill Ghent, manager of the Saranac Inn Golf and Country Club, told The Adirondack Daily Enterprise. The police had no reports of injuries or damage, and most people reported hearing the rumble rather than feeling it. In the last six months, there have been several earthquakes in the Northeast with a magnitude of more than 3.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/31/nyregion/31mbrfs-shake.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

As in the days of Noah...

Soccer Games Planned To Benefit Peruvian Earthquake Victims

SPRINGDALE-Members of the Northwest Arkansas Hispanic community are organizing benefit soccer games for Peruvian earthquake victims.Carlos Chicas, with representatives of First Bank Security, Tyson, Cargill and the Red Cross, will stage the games Sept. 8-9 at the Boys & Girls Club of Fayetteville, off Wedington Drive on Rupple Road.Chicas was in Guatemala when he learned of the 8.0-magnitude earthquake in Peru. He said he decided to organize soccer games to help the Peruvians.Fourteen soccer teams are scheduled to participate in the event. Red Cross representatives will collect donations to send to earthquake victims, said Liliana Heredia-Taylor, emergency services director with the Red Cross.The games will be from 5 to 9 p.m. Sept. 8 and from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sept. 9 at the Boys & Girls Club.Attendees age 12 and over are asked to make a $2 donation.Representatives of La Tremenda, KAKF, a local Spanish-language radio station, collected $3,000 Saturday for the victims of the earthquake, said Jose Antonio Goches, a station personality known as "El Turbo.""We washed cars and around 150 people showed up to help the victims of the earthquake," Goches said.Representatives of Tyson and Cargill are scheduled to provide food for those attending the soccer games, Chicas said.Rebecca Gaffing, marketing director with First Security Bank, said the bank is providing a grill and cooks.Thousands of families were left homeless by the earthquake and more than 500 people were killed.Getting emergency supplies to tens of thousands of people left homeless is a logistical nightmare for the Peruvian government.

http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2007/09/01/news/083007szperuben.txt

As in the days of Noah...

EARTHQUAKE Aid Donations Headed to Peru

AURORA-Almost 1,000 pounds of clothing, blankets, cookware and food collected from area residents is about two weeks away from benefiting earthquake victims in Peru.

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/537749,2_1_AU01_PERU_S1.article

As in the days of Noah...

Earthquake shakes Mexico's Gulf of California

CULIACAN,Mexico-A strong earthquake hit Mexico's Gulf of California on Saturday, but there were no reports of damage and no danger of a tsunami. The epicenter of the 6.3-magnitude earthquake was 61 miles from the town of Los Mochis in the tomato-growing state of Sinaloa, at a depth of 35 miles, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.Civil protection authorities in Los Mochis said they had not received any reports of damage or injuries.The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said there was no danger of dangerous waves from the earthquake.
"Fortunately, most of the earthquakes in the Gulf of California are the kind that don't lift the ocean bottom and so they don't generate waves," Tsunami Center geophysicist Gerard Fryer said.The Gulf of California, also known as the Sea of Cortez, separates the sparsely populated Baja California peninsula from mainland Mexico.Last April, a strong magnitude 6 earthquake shook Mexico, sending thousands of tourists in the resort of Acapulco fleeing into the streets in panic and knocking out electricity 250 miles away in Mexico City.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070901/wl_nm/mexico_quake_dc_4

As in the days of Noah...

UK having quakes....???

Who would have thought that the UK could have such an intense quake activity...!!!

I think we always asociate quakes with the Ring of Fire in the Pacific and we are right,but there are places like the UK where there is a recorded history of intense seismic activity every so many years and it's quite intense according to what it's been published.

This particular quake at Folkestone on last April 28th this year,is the highest recorded quake in 100 years-in the UK-with a maximun intensity assessed as of 6-7 EMS...

This pattern of increased seismic activity worldwide is not only referred as number of seismic episodes,but also as of an "increased recorded intensity",as you can all read below in the previous posts.

The Bible says that Jesus is the same yesterday,today and forever.He is unchanging....!So we can rest assured that if He said something....He will bring it to pass...

He said there would be earthquakes in divers places and also that that was the beginning of sorrows....

As the earth birthing pangs increase,the quake activity will too as we are witnessing....

This is one sign more to have us all ready at all times and looking up...

This is not a time to fear,but to trust in Him and to help and comfort others that- as recently in Peru-have been the victims of terrible quakes and aftershocks...

Let's be watchful and ready....

A quake may strike in your area soon....!!!

Blessings

As in the days of Noah...

UK:Folkestone Earthquake 28 April 2007 07:18 UTC (08:18 BST) 4.2 ML

Detailed analysis of all available seismic data from Saturday's 4.2 magnitude earthquake by the British Geological Survey shows that the epicentre was less than 1 km east of Folkestone and close to the area of maximum reported damage. However, uncertainties in epicentre determination are still of the order of 5 km. The event occurred at shallow depth, less than 5 km below the surface.Over one thousand replies have been received to our online macroseismic survey inviting the public to report the shaking and damage they experienced. The preliminary map of the results can be seen at http://www.earthquakes.bgs.ac.uk
The maximum intensity is currently assessed as 6-7 EMS (European Macroseismic Scale). This is the highest recorded intensity for a British earthquake in over 100 years. Acceleration levels at the nearest station (about 5km from the earthquake) were about 0.1g, also the highest recorded in the UK.The worst damage is concentrated within one area of Folkestone. In the most affected group of streets, serious structural damage to a few houses was observed, including large cracks in load-bearing walls. There have been many cases of damage to chimneys, with fall of chimney pots and fall of brickwork from the upper part of the chimney stacks, with secondary damage to roofs from falling masonry. A detailed damage survey is being carried out by BGS. The damage seems to have been exacerbated by local site conditions. The BGS are installing a number of additional sensors in southeast England to study any possible aftershocks or further earthquake activity.This is the largest earthquake in this region since a magnitude 4.4 ML earthquake in 1950. Significant earthquakes also struck the Dover Straits in 1776 and 1580; the latter had an magnitude of 5.7 ML and caused damage as far as London where two people were killed by falling masonry. Earthquakes of magnitude 4.2 ML occur in mainland UK roughly every 5 years although are more common in offshore areas. A magnitude 4.7 ML earthquake struck Dudley, West Midlands in 2002 and was widely felt across England and Wales....
To read more go to:
http://www.earthquakes.bgs.ac.uk/earthquakes/reports/folkestone/folkestone_28_april_2007.htm


As in the days of Noah...

SEISMIC ALERT: MANCHESTER 10 AUGUST 2007 10:50 UTC 2.5 ML

BGS have received numerous reports from the Media and from residents in the Manchester and Stockport areas, of a felt event at approximately 11:50 BST. The reports described “the whole house shook and vibrated for a few seconds”, “there was a sudden jolt” and “the building shook violently and people ran into the streets”.
The following preliminary information is available for this earthquake:
DATE : 10 August 2007
ORIGIN TIME : 10:50 10.9s
UTCLAT/LONG : 53.488º North / 2.185º West
GRID REF : 387.7 kmE / 399.1 kmN
DEPTH : 4.6 km
MAGNITUDE : 2.5 ML
LOCALITY : Manchester, Greater Manchester
This event locates in the same region as a series of approximately 150 events which occurred between October 2002 and January 2003. The largest event in that series, with a magnitude of 3.9 ML, occurred on 21 October 2002 and was felt throughout the region with intensities of at least 5 EMS. Manchester Earthquakes Swarm Report.
Click here to view a pdf of seismograms of the earthquake, as recorded on the BGS seismograph network and a map showing the seismicity within 25 km of the event since 1777.
Updated 10 August 2007
http://www.earthquakes.bgs.ac.uk/recent_events/uk_special/alert_info_uk.htm
PS:This event precedes the seismic activity recorded on past Aug 30th by the BSG in Manchester.Surely an event to keep an eye on...
As in the days of Noah...

BGS ALERT: CONFIRMED SONIC EVENTS NORTH WALES 23 AUGUST 2007 11:00 & 13:30 UTC

BGS has received several reports from members of the public and the Media of events between 11:00 and 11:20 UTC and again between 13:30 and 13:45 UTC today (23 August), from the Angelsey and Bangor areas of Gwynedd, North Wales. Reports describe "the windows rattled" and "the house shook". Data from the BGS rapid-access networks in the region were examined and no tectonic seismic events were detected. However, the reports received are consistent with historical observations received for previous events with a sonic origin.
British Aerospace was contacted and has confirmed that a Typhoon Euro-fighter was on supersonic exercises over the Irish Sea at these times, and that the aircraft went supersonic within the two time windows reported.
Updated 24 August 2007
http://www.earthquakes.bgs.ac.uk/recent_events/uk_special/alert_info_uk.htm
As in the days of Noah...

BGS ALERT: POSSIBLE SONIC EVENT CLEVELAND 24 AUGUST 2007 09:00-09:15 UTC

BGS has received information, via the Media, of a felt event, sometime between 09:00 and 09:15 UTC this morning, in the Redcar, Saltburn, Marske and Guisborough areas of Cleveland. Reports describe “heard a bang then felt a rumble” and "the house shook”. Data from the BGS rapid-access networks in the region were examined but no earthquakes or signals consistent with a sonic origin were detected. However, the reports received are consistent with historical observations received for previous events with a sonic origin.
Both RAF Flying Complaints and British Aerospace were contacted but neither could confirm if aircraft were operational at the time.
Updated 24 August 2007
http://www.earthquakes.bgs.ac.uk/recent_events/uk_special/alert_info_uk.htm
As in the days foNoah....

UK:Manchester Rocked by Earthquake

PRESS RELEASE
30 August 2007
Manchester Rocked by Earthquake
The British Geological Survey (BGS) recorded an earthquake with a magnitude of 2.2 ML in Greater Manchester at 05:46 BST (04:46 GMT). The BGS has received reports from residents throughout Manchester. The reports described "we felt the house shaking and a strong vibration", and "the building started to shake for a few seconds".
Summary:
DATE : 30 August 2007
ORIGIN TIME : 04:46 UTC (05:46 BST)
LAT/LONG : 53.48° North / 2.18° West
GRID REF : 388.2 kmE / 398.5 kmN
DEPTH : 4.5 km
MAGNITUDE : 2.2 ML
LOCALITY : Manchester, Greater Manchester
This morning’s earthquake locates in the same region as five other events which occurred earlier this month between 10-23 August; the largest event having a magnitude of 2.5 ML. All of these events locate in the same region as a series of 150 events which occurred between October 2002 and January 2003. The largest event in that series, with a magnitude of 3.9 ML, occurred on 21 October 2002 and was felt throughout the region with intensities of 5 EMS.
Seismologist Dr Brian Baptie of the British Geological Survey said:
"An earthquake of this magnitude is not unusual in the UK and you would not expect any structural damage as a result of this earthquake".
The BGS records approximately 200 earthquakes in the UK each year on its monitoring stations. The nearest station in this case was about 20km from the epicentre. Approximately 25 earthquakes in the UK are felt by people each year.
Figure 1. Seismograms of the Manchester earthquake of 30 August 2007
Figure 2. Historical and instrumental seismicity (all magnitudes) within 25 km of the Manchester earthquake of 30 August 2007 since 1777.
http://www.earthquakes.bgs.ac.uk/recent_events/uk_special/manchester_30_aug_2007.pdf

As in the days of Noah...

PSALM 46:1-3

"God is our refuge and strength,a very present help in trouble,
Therefore will not we fear,though the earth be removed,and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled,though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof.Selah."

As in the days of Noah...

New Data Confirms Strong Earthquake Risk to Central U.S.-PART One

A colossal earthquake that caused damage from South Carolina to Washington D.C. and temporarily reversed the course of the Mississippi River nearly two centuries ago could be repeated within the next 50 years, scientists said today.Strain is building on a fault near Memphis,Tennessee that was the site of a magnitude 8.1 earthquake in 1812, according to new observations that settle a debate on the risk of another huge quake. The odds of another 8.0 event within 50 years are between 7 and 10 percent, geologists said today. The assessment, based on new data from a recently installed array of sensors, puts to rest a 1990s claim that strain was not increasing.Such a strong earthquake would rock the entire eastern half of the country and prove devastating to the local region. A lesser but still damaging quake of magnitude 6 or greater has a 90 percent chance of striking in the next five decades.The new study, detailed in the June 23 issue of the journal Nature, reveals a vexing characteristic of the fault that traverses the region. The ground moves more near the fault, creeping a few millimeters every year, than it does farther from it."I can't explain how the movement is driven," said study team member Michael Ellis, a geologist at the University of Memphis.That lack of understanding makes the task of pinpointing when the next quake might hit even more challenging...

By Robert Roy Britt, LiveScience Senior Writer

To be continued...

http://www.livescience.com/

As in the days of Noah....

RECENT CENTRAL US QUAKES...

There are 197 quakes in this map.

http://folkworm.ceri.memphis.edu/recenteqs/

As in the days of Noah...

QUAKES DAILY....

*GANSU, CHINA
1 Sep 2007 03:35:52 UTC
Magnitude:4.8 Mb
*ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS.
1 Sep 2007 10:32:39 UTC
Magnitude:4.3 Mb
*MOLUCCA SEA
1 Sep 2007 15:26:33 UTC
Magnitude:5.5 Mb
*UTAH
1 Sep 2007 18:32:02 UTC
Magnitude:3.8 Mcd
*GULF OF CALIFORNIA
1 Sep 2007 19:14:30 UTC
Magnitude:5.6 Mb
As in the days of Noah...