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An earthquake is the motion or trembling of the ground produced by sudden displacement of rock in the Earth's crust. Earthquakes result from crustal strain, volcanism, landslides, and collapse of caverns. Earthquakes can affect hundreds of thousands of square kilometers; cause damage to property measured in the tens of billions of dollars; result in loss of life and injury to hundreds of thousands of persons; and disrupt the social and economic functioning of the affected area. This set of slides provides an overview and summary of effects caused by 11 earthquakes in eight countries. The images show surface faulting, landslides, soil liquefaction, and structural damage.
On September 19, 1985, a magnitude 8.1 earthquake occurred off the Pacific coast of Mexico. The damage was concentrated in a 25 km2 area of Mexico City, 350 km from the epicenter. The underlying geology and geologic history of Mexico City contributed to this unusual concentration of damage at a distance from the epicenter. Of a population of 18 million, an estimated 10,000 people were killed, and 50,000 were injured. In addition, 250,000 people lost their homes and property damage amounted to $5 billion. This set of slides shows different types of damaged buildings and the major kinds of structural failure that occurred in this earthquake including collapse of top, middle and bottom floors and total building failure. The effect of the subsoils on the earthshaking and building damage is emphasized.
The set of slides graphically illustrates the potential danger that major earthquakes pose to school structures and to the children and adults who happen to be inside at the time of the earthquake. It includes pictures from 1886 to 1988. The slide set includes nine destructive earthquakes that occurred in the U.S. and eight earthquakes that occurred in foreign countries.
Faults
Through the study of faults and their effects, much can be learned about the size and recurrence intervals of earthquakes. Faults also teach us about crustal movements that have produced mountains and changed continents. Initially a section of Earth's crust may merely bend under pressure to a new position. Or slow movement known as seismic creep may continue unhindered along a fault plane. However stresses often continue to build until they exceed the strength of the rock in that section of crust. The rock then breaks, and an earthquake occurs, sometimes releasing massive amounts of energy. The ensuing earth displacement is known as a fault. This slide set describes the mechanism and types of faulting. It illustrates a variety of fault expressions in natural and manmade features.
On December 7, 1988, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake shook northwestern Armenia, and was followed four minutes later by a magnitude 5.8 aftershock. The earthquakes affected an area 80 km in diameter. This set includes damage photographs taken in and around the devastated cities of Spitak and Leninakan, where 25,000 deaths occurred. It illustrates the structural types that were vulnerable to failure.
On April 25, 1992, a magnitude 7.1 earthquake occurred in the Cape Mendocino area. Two additional earthquakes, magnitudes 6.6 and 6.7 occurred the next morning. The first earthquake was located six miles north of Petrolia, California, in a sparsely populated part of southwestern Humboldt County. Five small communities were located within a 50 mile radius of these events: Honeydew, Petrolia, Rio Dell, Scotia, and Ferndale. This slide set illustrates the effects and damage of a moderately large earthquake and moderate aftershocks on this sparsely settled area.
At 4:31 A.M. (Local time) on Monday, January 17, 1994, a magnitude 6.8 earthquake twenty miles west northwest of downtown Los Angeles awoke nearly everyone in southern California. Damage was most extensive in the San Fernando Valley, the Simi Valley, and in the northern part of the Los Angeles Basin. This slide set depicts the damage in Northridge the epicentral area. Photos show damage to a shopping center, parking garages, and the interior and exterior of apartment buildings.
A magnitude 8.1 earthquake occurred in the southern Kurils and on northern Hokkaido on Tuesday, October 5, 1994, (October 4 at 13:23 GMT). It was a sudden event, without any short- term precursors or foreshocks. The earthquake epicenter was located 80 km east southeast of Shikotan Island. The slides in this set show views of a newly-created landslide formation, ground cracks, structural damage, and effects of tsunami runup on Shikotan Island. The documentation is a scientific overview of this event, written by a member of the international team that studied it.
The magnitude 7.2 quake occurred at 6.57 pm local time (1657 GMT). Duzce lies on the eastern fringe of the region hit by the August 17 quake. Some areas experienced a one-two punch from the 1999 earthquakes. The death toll from the November quake was reported to be 260 people. More than 1,282 were injured and at least 102 buildings were destroyed.
On August 17, 1999, a magnitude Mw 7.4 earthquake occurred along the westernmost North Anatolian fault. The earthquake epicenter was 11 km southeast of the City of Izmit, in the sub-province of Kocaeli, a densely populated area in the industrial heartland of Turkey, and less than 80 km southeast of Istanbul. The earthquake damaged buildings across seven provinces for a distance of 250 km from Istanbul to Bolu. Casualties totaled 17,000 and additional thousands were missing and presumed dead. Injuries numbered 23,984 and an estimated 500,000 people were left homeless with 200,000 living on the streets. Damage estimates range from $10 billion to $40 billion. The fault crossed some of the most densely populated regions of Turkey. The affected population numbered 15 million people. The economics of the damaged region represented ten percent of the GNP of Turkey. This area of Turkey will continue to be active in a seismic sense, and appropriate steps need to be taken now to minimize the effects and fatalities of the next earthquake.