Fault Lines in America

The following link has a video from ABC news that shows some of the largest fault lines in the U.S.

One of them is the San Andreas fault line, but there are at least four more active zones, and one of them is very close to New York City which has been quiet for 200 years and this is a big problem because stress is very probable building in that fault line.

On the morning of December 16, 1811 there was a large quake in the New Madrid fault which runs from Saint Louis to Memphis, it was because of this earthquake and the aftershocks that followed that Reelfoot lake, which is 16 miles long, was formed during the most powerful series of earthquakes in the U.S. that we know about.

The first earthquake was estimated to be a 7.5 but it had more than 2,000 aftershocks over 5 months and some aftershocks measured up to 8.0 in the richter scale. This event was so powerful that the Mississippi river ran backwards.

abcnews.go.com...

If the above video doesn't load properly you can also watch it in the following link which also has an article with some info.

abcnews.go.com...

[edited to add info and for errors]


[edit on 20-1-2010 by ElectricUniverse]

I was telling my coworkers about this today. NYC sits on a huge fault line. It is also extremely prone to hurricanes. It is just in a really bad spot.

Living around 20 miles east of the center of the New Madrid fault,we are very aware of the potential devistation an 8.0 earth quake could have from St.Louis to Memphis. The New Madrid is an unusual fault in the respect that it is two faults,one on top of the other.

The New Madrid fault line is best known for some of the most violent earthquakes to ever hit the United States: a series of four in 1811 and 1812. The quakes were estimated at magnitude 7.5 to 8.0, so strong the Mississippi River reportedly flowed backward

wow

star and flag for mother earth

reply to post by l neXus l


There were estimated 2,000 aftershocks which occurred over the next 5 months, some measuring 8.0. The Reelfoot lake, which is 16 miles long, was formed during this event also.


[edit on 20-1-2010 by ElectricUniverse]

In a place like California, people know that there is a risk of earthquakes. The building codes take that risk into account as best they can.

The thought of an earthquake in a place like New York or another area that doesn't expect earthquakes just chills me to the bone.

I've seen what even a small quake can do do an area that isn't prepared for earthquakes. My parents' home and their church both sustained minor damage in the 1994 Cacoosing Valley earthquakes in Pennsylvania. There was a 4.0 foreshock followed by a 4.7 main shock about an hour later. My parents had a number of cracks in their drywall, and a cabinet shook out of the wall at church. Some sidewalks and streets developed small cracks. Dishes broke and things were thrown off shelves.

And don't let anyone tell you animals don't know when an earthquake's coming—my otherwise fearless terrier spent the hours before those quakes cowering inside an end table.

reply to post by sweetpeanc


Well, i am glad noone in your family was injured, and you are right. there are many areas here people would not think earthquaks would occur yet there are fault lines running along almost every corner of the world.

In a place like California, people know that there is a risk of earthquakes. The building codes take that risk into account as best they can.

So true, California's building codes are the toughest in the nation thanks to its strict earthquake-proof requirements. NY's building codes aren't as severe, which can cover anything from welding strength for steel members, masonry tiebacks, moment-resisting cross or shear bracing, even harmonic balancers on top of tall buildings. If NYC gets his by a big one, it will be EPIC.

USGS has made kml files for Google Earth showing Quaternary faults in USA territory:

earthquake.usgs.gov...