Seismic Activity on the Wasatch Front
Recently, we have witnessed the immense destruction caused by both the earthquake in Chile and most significantly in Haiti. Many people have organized volunteer groups and have dedicated their time to organizing donations to help these people, but it is quite frightening to think that something of the like could one day happen to your home and your city. Most people assume that it could never to them, but the truth is that it could happen to anyone living on or near a fault.
For example, anyone who lives where I live, in Salt Lake City, lives on the Wasatch Front. Many residents know that there is a possibility of earthquake activity, but most do not actively consider being prepared for when it will happen, and it will happen someday. The Wasatch Front is actually the "largest fault of its type in the world." The Wasatch Fault was created because the Earth's crust is being pulled in an east-west direction. While large earthquakes have not occurred very recently, scientists have discovered the places in which they have occurred over many years. One of these places is the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon.
"The earthquake clock, or time interval between earthquakes, for the Wasatch Fault is a very large unknown...The reason for the lack of small to moderate earthquakes is not known. Some faults do have small earthquakes on a fairly regular basis. These frequent small earthquakes may be preventing the build up of large forces (strain) in the rock, thus preventing large earthquakes. There is concern that this is not happening on the Wasatch Fault and thus the fault is "locked" and that a significant amount of strain is building within the rocks which will ultimately result in large earthquakes." The Earthquake Clock on the Wasatch Front
Because the fault is predicted to be "locked," many predict that there will soon be a huge earthquake with a large magnitude. Utahns should take heed to the warnings at home, especially as they are reminded of the imminent danger of earthquakes that have occurred abroad. Here is a general list of things that you should remember and prepare for in advance:
"If you are outside, move away from power lines, trees and buildings.
If you are inside, stay away from windows, mirrors cupboards, and shelves.
Take cover under a sturdy table or desk. Hold on to it.
You can also stand under a doorway, they are one of the strongest foundations of a house.
Be prepared for possible shaking after the main quake.
If you are in a high building, stay out of the elevators and stairways.
A family can prepare for an earthquake by having flashlights, helmets and sturdy shoes, a first aid kit, a fire extinguisher, bottled water, canned food and a can opener.
Stay calm." What to Do in Event of an Earthquake
Comments
Christina - great post! I
Christina -
Christina, Thank you for
Christina,
Thank you for your post, this is an issue that all of us need to be aware of especially because we are in Utah. I completely agreed with you when you said, "Most people assume that it could never to them, but the truth is that it could happen to anyone living on or near a fault." It is so true that people comfort themselves with the mind set of "oh it could never happen to me." For example, when I thought of earthquakes and the devastation they can cause my mind would drift to images of third world countries. This is an extremely misinformed assumption, mainly because fault lines are everywhere, and just because we have yet to have an extemely massive one hit close to home does not mean that it will not happen. Thank you for providing tips on how we could all prepare oursleves, that is something all of us need to do.
Great post,
Emma
Christina, I thought your
Christina,
I thought your post about earthquakes was both extremely interesting and terrifying. We have all heard the warnings about the earthquake that is suppose to occur soon in salt lake we even joke that our football field is right on a fault line. But i dont think any of us will be laughing if there was an actually earthquake which let judge just collapse. I also really like in your post how you gave us a list of things to do if an earthquake actually occurred. That is the first step towards being prepared looking up and trying to be informed about what to do. I think that in school and in general in salt lake we need to inform the public more and we need to not only know what to do at school and have a plan for that but also we need to have a plan for when were not at school and say were at the mall. We all need to be better prepared when it comes to emergencys so that we can act quickly and maybe help save others who were not so prepared. Thanks so much for your post! i look foward to seeing what else you write in the future.
Good post!
Claire
CMoser, Your post,
CMoser,
Your post, "Seismic Activity on the Wasatch Front" reminds me of 7th grade. We had a science teacher who kept telling us that an earthquake was coming, it was going to be the biggest one ever, and every person in Salt Lake was going to die. Granted this is a little out of proportion, but this idea was still there. Well it has been about 5 years and an earthquake has not happened yet. Don't get me wrong I am still aware that earthquakes happen but I have grown a little bias to one happening in Salt Lake. It might happen, and it could happen today but nobody really knows when an earthquake will strike. It is a good idea for people to be prepared, but nobody knows when being prepared will come in handy. A great post!
Dear Christina, I really
Dear Christina,
I really liked your post titled, "Seismic Activity on the Wasatch Front", for it seems as if many people living in the valley don't take the possible earthquake into account. We hear about earthquakes happening all over the world, but it is hard, almost impossible to imagine what it would be like if one were to happen in Salt Lake. It seems as if a possible earthquake is ignored by the community and the government. I think that the government needs to help prep the private communtiy in preparing for a large earthquake. It would really help in recovering after the earthquake. Thanks for your great post!
-Dylan
Christina, Excellent post
Christina,
Excellent post on a very relevant issue. Many of the other "senioritis" themed posts talk about going away to college, but in the meantime we all need to be aware of the threats inherent in living on the Wasatch Front. Hopefully events like Hurricane Katrina have reminded us that natural disasters can be very destructive even in the United States. And hopefully living near to a potentially deadly fault line has increased the altruism of Wasatch Front residents in response to recent earthquakes. And hopefully all such events remind us that humanity is not in charge of the planet and that our knowledge will always be incomplete
On a more humorous note, I enjoyed how What to Do in Event of an Earthquake specified the need for a can opener. I have seen a Close To Home comic based on that very premise, showing a husband and wife in a food cellar stocked full of can foods with the wife yelling at her husband for forgetting that item.
Great Post,
C. Domeier
Christina, I really liked
Christina,
I really liked your post. It is true that we don't think about Natural Disasters until they happen in our own neighborhood. We do live along a fault line especially where we go to school. There should be ways to help keep us safe during an earthquake aka earthquake proofing our homes, but if one hits us that hit Chile and Hatiti there is not much we can do to stop it.
Emer
Christina, Your post
i definetly agree.. this is
i definetly agree..
this is a big promblem. and the scary thing is that no one can really predict them.
my town has now recently gotten hit by some earthquakes.
and now we are supposed to get a huge one.
its really scary to think of.