Stories tagged earthquake
Myanmar cyclone
Courtesy Robert Rohde
229,000 deaths
In the first six months of 2008, natural disasters resulted in 229,000 deaths, effecting 130 million people. The natural disasters responsible for these very high figures are Cyclone Nargis, which struck Myanmar last May 3-4, and the earthquake that shook China a few days later.
The severe hurricane season in the Caribbean and the current floods in India, which are reaching historic proportions, are also considered among the most serious disasters of 2008. (Sálvano Briceño, director of the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction)
Tags : Two provinces in China hit last May by a devastating earthquake were hit again early Saturday. The 6.1 magnitude tremor struck around 0730 GMT damaging more than 100,000 homes according to the Xinhua news agency. Communications have been sketchy and rescue efforts delayed by heavy rains in the region. So far 22 people have been reported killed.
More on the latest quake from the BBC
Latest from Xinhua news
Here's the USGS data on the earthquake, and CNN's developing story.
Stopping skyscraper shaking during earthquakes
730 ton "mass damper": This 730 ton mass damper helps stabilize the building against swaying.
Courtesy jaaronOne of the world's tallest buildings is only 600 ft. from a fault line. The recent Sichuan Earthquake in China shook the Taipei 101 building in Taiwan—a whole eight minutes after the quake originated.
One way to stabilize these tall builds from swaying too much during earthquakes or from high winds is to install enormous pendulum weights. When the building sways sideways the pendulum doesn't want to move (inertia) and exerts a pull in the opposite direction.
These gigantic suspended weights are called tuned mass dampers. The world's tallest building, the Burj Dubai, has nine mass dampers. The mass damper in the Taipei 101 building has a mass of 730 tons.
Watch the 730 ton mass damper in action
Sources: Popular Mechanics and Gizmodo.
Killer earthquake strikes Japan
Hundreds of troops armed with shovels and power-saws sifted through the splintered remains of a resort hotel in Japan Sunday in search of survivors after a powerful earthquake struck at around 8.45 a.m. on Saturday. (TurkishPress)
7.2 magnitude quake in Japan
Nine people were killed, 11 are missing, and more than 220 others were injured in the earthquake, the most powerful to strike inland Japan in eight years.
Read more by clicking the link below.
7.2 magnitude earthquake shakes Japan (TimesOnline)
Chinese earthquake location
Courtesy USGSThe Tangjiashan “quake lake”
formed by a landslide during China’s devastating May 12th earthquake is draining slowly thanks to a sluice constructed by engineers there. Fears of the lake bursting from its earthen dam pushed authorities to find a quick and effective way to release the pressure building from the backed-up water. More than a million people living in the area were under threat of being inundated with millions of cubic meters of water.
As work crews start construction of a second drainage channel, engineers are closely watching downstream riverbanks and bridges for any sign of stress from the surging waters.
The 7.9 magnitude earthquake killed over 60,000 people and more than 17,000 are still missing.
SOURCES AND LINKS
AP story
BBC report
Maps and photos of lake region
A 6.1 magnitude earthquake has occurred in Iceland, just 30 miles from the capital city of Reykjavik. The tremor took place at 1546 GMT beneath the town of Selfoss, where extensive damage to buildings is being reported. Iceland is located along the boundary of the North American and Eurasian plates, and is subject to many earthquakes, but not usually as strong as this most recent one.
An aftershock measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale caused landslides and other damage in the same areas devastated by the earthquake four days ago. At last report, some 4.8 million people were homeless, and more than 22,000 people died. Blocked roads and other damage to infrastructure have made it hard for rescuers and other aid to reach the hardest-hit cities and villages. China has asked the US for satellite images that might help locate victims and identify damaged infrastructure. And Western experts are watching carefully for any signs that China's nuclear weapons facilities, which are concentrated in the earthquake zone, have been damaged.
More Buzz stories about the earthquake:
"7.8 earthquake in Sichuan, China"
"Chinese panda habitat in jeopardy after earthquake"
Earthquake in Sichuan, China
Courtesy U.S. Geological Survey
Toll from China quake estimated at 3,000 to 5,000
A 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck central China, but sent thousands of people rushing out of buildings and into the streets hundreds of miles away in Beijing and Shanghai.
The powerful earthquake trapped nearly 900 students in central China on Monday after their school collapsed and at least 107 people were killed across several provinces, state media reported.Yahoo News
New media allows instant news broadcasting
Blogs and a text message like tool called Twitter allowed the blogosphere to witness first person reports in real time (click examples below)
Are you just like JGordon? Do you feel smugly safe not living in earthquake-ridden California? Well, you may not be as safe as you think.
Midwest earthquake zone
Courtesy USGS via Wikimedia CommonsA powerful earthquake emanating from southern Illinois rattled skyscrapers in downtown Chicago this morning, and was felt as far away as Des Moines, Iowa, Atlanta, Georgia, and southern Ontario, Canada.
Folks in the region surrounding the quake's epicenter near the town of West Salem (map), in southeast Illinois, were rudely shaken out of bed at 4:37am CDT. Some places reported minor structural damage, such as bricks knocked from structures, and a collapsed porch.
The 5.2-magnitude quake (which coincidently has occurred on the very same day of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake) is thought to involve the Wabash Valley fault, an extension of the famous New Madrid fault in southern Missouri. Back in the early 1800s, the New Madrid fault was the source of one of the largest earthquakes felt in the contiguous United States (although at the time, the town of New Madrid, Missouri, for which the fault is named, was a part of the Louisiana Territory).
There will no doubt be more information about this current Midwest tremblor as the day goes on.
LINKS
New York Times story
USA Today
Doom and gloom from National Geographic
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