Could we be getting ready for the Big Quake?

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

I'm not talking California, I'm talking of New Madrid MO. Local news has said there were two fairly large quakes on the New Madrid fault line in the last week or so. There's been a major quake (like over 8 on the Richter Scale)in this area about every 200 years or so. Last time was in 1812. The Mississippi and Ohio Rivers ran backwards at that time, Reelfoot Lake TN was formed, islands sank, and there was a lot of damage. Now there would be a lot more, because St. Louis and Memphis would be involved in any quake.

[jus_the_facts]

1. Whatever will be.......will be......

:shrug:

[MnFats]

8. believe it or not there have been a couple quivers here..

in minn. and dakota recently.
no damage, most people hardly noticed.
but it's weird for us.
We supposedly sit on the oldest granite in the earth.
as Keanu would say, "whoa.'

[SmileyBoy]

2. Probably, but I don't think it would be over 8.

I'd say New Madrid could see 7.5 or thereabouts in the immediate future. Something maybe a little bigger than the Northridge quake in 1994.

[Deja Q]

3. OMG!!!!!!!!

Now that redefines the concept "sig line"! :D

On edit, Kermit is horrible. Why isn't that Miss Piggy? :shrug:

[soothsayer]

4. Maybe Yellowstone will blow, instead

Take the pressure off.

Same with Oregon/Washington. Kablooey!

[happyslug]

5. last time I did Research on New Madrid

There was some debate whether the New Madrid fault is a 200 or 300 year fault. The geological record is confusing (Caused by the flow of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers AND the last ice age). What this mean it can occur within the next 20 years, or 100 year from now.

[DU9598]

6. 3.3 in Iowa yesterday

<http://www.dmregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040717/NEWS08/407170353/1001>

Iowa on Friday had its first official earthquake.

The 3.3-magnitude quake centered 15 miles southwest of Shenandoah caused vibrations along the lines of hearing a souped-up car stereo booming outside. Still, it was the first quake centered in Iowa recorded by geologic instruments. One for the books, even if it wasn't worth a whole page.

The quake hit at 7:17 a.m., centered four miles south of Riverton, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. There are fault lines in that part of the state, but scientists can't say which, if any, caused the tremor.

[HuckleB]

7. Fear the quake!

Fear the volcanic eruption!

This is just filler news that gets the attention of many, because we apparently are attracted to fear.

Don' worry aboutit!

[NV Whino]

9. I bet

it's gonna be the repugnants' October surprise.

[TreasonousBastard]

10. Maybe the asteroid will hit first...

or maybe there will be huge tsunamis from falling rocks in the Azores, or Yellowstone will blow, or the Gulf Stream will reverse, or... or...

Eventually, something very, very bad is going to happen again.

I'd think about it if I could do something about it.

[SW FL Dem]

11. I hope not

Having lived through Northridge in 1994, I wouldn't wish it on anyone.

[cliss]

12. that's really strange, a.

I didn't think New Madrid had any kind of earthquake activity, nor any of the other areas reported.

I'm aware of the West Coast being part of the 'Ring of Fire' which runs along the west coast all the way down thru South America, and also Hawaii and Japan.

This is kind of a surprise.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

14. Earthquakes recorded daily at New Madrid

but by very sensitive instruments-usually around 1 or less. The recent ones have been stronger. If you look at this area, it resembles the shattered shell of a hard boiled egg. There have been earthquakes in Southern Illinois in 1968 and 1972, both of which caused structural damage. Since '72, there have been earthquake codes in place, and there are some earthquake plans. But from what I've heard, they are woefully inadequate for places like Memphis.

I realize this might not happen tomorrow, but it is something that is likely, and today is the day to start planning. Not looking at building codes, etc, makes as much sense as not having a tornado shelter in Oklahoma.

[bratcatinok]

17. You'd be surprised at the number of people who don't have

tornado shelters here in Oklahoma. In my small town maybe one house in 20 has a cellar or shelter. The shelter closest to me is 5 blocks away. Last time we had rotation there were over 20 people in that one shelter.

I was the only one that thought to bring a carton of cigarettes (yes, I know! It's a nasty habit.) and I was the most popular person there.

[Spinzonner]

13. Plus you all dont have decent earthquake building codes

So, will you be having waterfront access on the Gulf of Mexico soon ?

[starroute]

15. A quake of 7+ in New Madrid is a lot worse than one in California

In California, the earth is broken up by many small faults, and that quickly dissipates the energy of any quake. But the eastern US is all one huge, rigid plate, and the whole thing shakes as a unit when a large quake hits it. Two hundred years ago, the New Madrid quakes caused church bells to ring in Boston.

(The area around New Madrid is also a major center for UFOs and other anomalous events. Some people think that tectonic stresses building up in the rocks are the cause of strange lights in the sky or even weirder things. I don't know that you can depend on UFOs as an earthquake predictor, though.)

On edit: Here's a shake map for the strongest of the New Madrid quakes. Note that it was capable of doing damage as far as Virginia and was felt weakly even up in New England and Canada.

[Misinformed01]

16. There was a guy who predicted that in '92

Remember that? Everyone was freaking out...on the ambulance (I was a paramedic in MO then) we were put on teams to respond. It was a cluster fuck.

Yes, I think there will be one there eventually; the person to ask would be Dinoboy-Dad's a geologist. Or HawkeyeX---I think his Dad is too.