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Sponsored by 710 BookStore - - - http://www.seventen.com/On shaky ground
Matthew McConkey Daily EgyptianScientists studying the New Madrid fault line, which extends into southern Illinois, recently had some startling information for area residents: Be prepared for a major earthquake.
They are predicting that a major earthquake could hit the Midwest within the next 15 to 20 years. For long, people have known about the fault line through the area, but in the United States, major earthquakes are more commonly linked with the Southwest, not the heartland.
If an earthquake of the magnitude scientists believe would ever strike the area, it could demolish old buildings across southern Illinois and would be powerful enough to shake the brick and mortar off new buildings in the area.
Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma have showed America and the world how susceptible people can be to natural disasters. In those instances, thousands of lives were lost, billions of dollars in property was destroyed, and lives were altered forever. And for many of them, they were given warning.
History of earthquakes in the Midwest
A large earthquake has already unleashed its power on southern Illinois.
On Dec. 16, 1811, along the New Madrid Fault line, which stretches from west of Memphis and makes a backwards Z into southern Illinois, an earthquake hit the town of New Madrid, Mo., about 180 miles from St. Louis and 90 miles from Carbondale, and shook down chimneys and trees, and woke the settlers out of their beds.
The earthquake made giant waves on the Mississippi River that washed boats on shore, destroyed sand bars and buried islands along the river forever. Although there were no gauges to measure its magnitude at the time, it was predicted that it affected around 48,000 to 86,000 square miles. The shock was so great that chimneys in Cincinnati were brought to the ground. Its been reported that citizens of Washington, D.C. felt the tremor, some 700 miles away.
Although there is no exact estimate as how many people were killed, historians say that loss of life was little.
About 123 years after the worst earthquake in the Midwest's history, another tremor shook the railroad town of Rodney, Mo., on Aug. 19, 1934. Again, books and chimneys were knocked off their shelves and foundations. Similar effects were felt in southern Illinois and into western Kentucky.
One of the last earthquakes to shake southern Illinois came on Nov. 9, 1968, when a 5.5 magnitude tremor that was felt all the way to Herman, Mo., and Sikeston, Mo. If it hits southern Illinois
If a major earthquake were to hit southern Illinois, the damage could be great, said Joan Gomberg, who works for the U.S. Geological Survey earthquake hazard program in Memphis.
Gomberg has been studying the New Madrid fault line for years and said the chances of an earthquake of 6.0 or greater hitting the region within the next 15 to 20 years is 25 to 40 percent, while a 7.5 or larger is around seven to 10 percent. The largest is a 12.0, which is strong enough to split the earth in half.
"If it's a six, it depends upon where it hits," Gomberg said. "If it hits next to an urban area, it could do a lot of damage. But if it occurs in the boondocks, it won't be nearly as damaging."
Gomberg and her colleagues have been studying the fault line to figure out why earthquakes occur in this region.
In California, for instance, two plate tectonics, the North American plate and the Pacific plate, run along each other. When one plate moves along the other, an earthquake occurs. But in this region, Gomberg said, the New Madrid fault line doesn't run along any other fault lines, and earthquakes here baffle Gomberg and her colleagues.
"There is really nothing moving around that would generate earthquakes to happen multiple times," Gomberg said. "They just do. It's really a mystery."
Nevertheless, earthquakes do happen in the Midwest. In fact, on Tuesday a 2.7 magnitude earthquake hit just outside of Irvington, Ill., which is 74 miles north of Carbondale. Six different earthquakes, all less than 2.0 magnitudes, hit southern Illinois last week, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
How earthquakes are measured
Seismologists use the Richter scale to measure earthquakes. Generally, earthquakes less than 3.5 are not felt but, nonetheless, are still recorded. Tremors that reach 3.5 to 5.4 are felt, shake the ground momentarily but cause little to no damage. By the time an earthquake reaches the Richter scale at 6.1 to 6.9, the effects start to become great. They can destroy homes and rock buildings from the epicenter up to 60 miles away.
When an earthquake hits a magnitude of 7.0 to 7.9, the effects can be felt for hundreds of miles and cause serious damage to the effected areas. The Landers, Calif., earthquake in 1992 was a 7.5, which is roughly the size of 160 million tons of TNT going off. TNT is an explosive, which miners and construction crews use to blast rocks and clear paths.
If an earthquake greater than 8.0 hits, the effects are astronomical. Earthquake proof buildings will still feel the effects, while non-earthquake proof buildings will be completely leveled.
Preparing for the big one
If a natural disaster, such as an earthquake, does hit, officials in Illinois are prepared and can respond immediately.
Keith Chambers is an earthquake specialist for the Illinois Emergency Management Agency. His job entails putting together a response plan for the state should it be victim of a catastrophic earthquake, specifically the New Madrid fault line.
He works alongside county governments to send assistance, help clear roads and get communications about a disaster in Illinois. Chambers also said he is working with the Mid-American Earthquake Center at the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana to make a model that will detail every point of what would happen if the earthquakes ever strikes. "The people themselves are probably not as prepared for it simply because it doesn't happen that often," Chambers said.
So citizens of southern Illinois conscious about living above a fault line, a radio-television professor, along with the help of students, has developed an earthquake video. The video, which runs five minutes long and will start running on PBS this month, showcases four different people caught in different situations during an earthquake. Since earthquakes don't come at any specific time, people could be sleeping or making breakfast when an earthquake hits, said Scott Hodges, associate professor and editor of the video.
Hodges said he hopes the video brings awareness, because southern Illinoisans are so susceptible to earthquakes.
"When you only have earthquakes every 125 years, you tend not to think about it," Hodges said.
The video also shows people how to strap down hot water tanks, bookshelves and where to go in case someone is trapped in an earthquake.
Chambers also said awareness is key to surviving an earthquake and the people of southern Illinois should be ready for anything.
"We are not prepared for (earthquakes) because we don't get them very often," Chamber said. "People who live in the flood plains expect a flood ... but we don't think about earthquakes."
The Daily Egyptian, the student-run newspaper of SIUC, is committed to being a trusted source of information, commentary and public discourse while helping readers understand the issues affecting their lives.
The Daily Egyptian is published by the students of SIU at Carbondale. Except during vacations and exam weeks, The Daily Egyptian is published Monday through Friday during the fall and spring semesters and TWThF during the summer semester. The Pulse, Carbondale Entertainment Guide, is published once a week on Thursday.Last update: Wednesday, December 7, 2005 at 7:24:25 PM
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