Earthquakes

Earthquake History of Chile Here are some of the major quakes in Chilean history: 1730 - 8.7 magnitude at central Valparaiso. 1835 - 8.2 magnitude south-central Concepcion, 500 dead. 1868 - 9.0 magnitude in Arica, (then Peru), 25,000 dead. 1877 - 8.3 magnitude offshore northern Tarapaca, 34 dead. 1906 - 8.2 magnitude at central Valparaiso, 3,882 dead. 1922 - 8.5 magnitude on Chile-Argentina border. 1928 - 7.6 magnitude at Talca, 225 dead. 1939 - 7.8 magnitude at Chillan, 28,000 dead. 1943 - 8.2 magnitude near Illapel-Salamanca, 25 dead. 1960 - 7.9 magnitude at Arauco Peninsula. 1960 - 9.5 magnitude at Valdivia, 1,655 dead. 1965 - 7.0 magnitude at Taltal, 1 dead. 1965 - 7.4 magnitude at La Ligua, 400 dead. 1971 - 7.5 magnitude in Valparaiso region, 90 dead. 1985 - 7.8 magnitude offshore Valparaiso, 177 dead. 1998 - 7.1 magnitude near coast of northern Chile. 2002 - 6.6 magnitude at Chile-Argentina border region. 2003 - 6.8 magnitude near coast of central Chile. 2004 - 6.6 magnitude near Bio-Bio, central Chile. 2005 - 7.8 magnitude Tarapaca, northern Chile, 11 dead. 2007 - 7.7 magnitude at Antofagasta, north Chile, 2 dead. 2007 - 6.7 magnitude at Antofagasta. 2008 - 6.3 magnitude at Tarapaca. 2009 - 6.5 magnitude offshore Tarapaca. Source: U.S. Geological Survey (Compiled by Doina Chiacu).

Chiles Geography

Chiles Geography

Chile Earthquake of 1960 It was the largest Earthquake ever recorded in the world at a 9.5 magnitude. Killed over 1600 people and injured over 2000. The quake was so powerful that is sent tsunami waves as high as 38 feet to neighboring countries. The epicenter of the earthquake was about 60 meters below the ocean floor and 100 miles off the coast.

Cost and Damages Left 2,000,000 people homeless $550 million dollars in damage in Southern Chile, the equivalent of approximately $4.3 billion in todays dollars $75 million in Hawaii along with 61 deaths and 1600 homes destroyed $50 million in Japan along with 138 deaths The quake was so powerful it even sent tsunamis to the United States and the Philippines

Wave Strength and Movement

Was Chile Prepared? In 1960 the Chilean government was prepared for the earthquake but it wasn’t prepared for the tsunamis. Minutes after the earthquake officials told coastal communities that there was very little threat for a tsunami. The government has suggested that the reason for this was they were using flawed data from the Navy. Every building is required to have a emergency procedure.

Fun Facts The 1960 Earthquake was the largest in the world A 9.0 magnitude earthquake is approximately 1,000 time stronger than a 7.0 magnitude There are about 500,000 earthquakes per year The Sun and Moon can cause tremors Oil extraction can cause minor earthquakes

Economic Strain from 1960 Earthquake Different sources have estimated the monetary cost ranged from US $400 million to 800 million (or 2.9 to 5.8 billion in 2011 dollars, adjusted for inflation) A number of Spanish-colonial fortification were completely destroyed. Soil subsidence also destroyed buildings, deepened local rivers, and created wetlands. Extensive areas of the city were flooded. The electricity and water systems of Valdivia were totally destroyed. Witnesses reported underground water flowing up through the soil. Despite the heavy rains the city was without a water supply. The river turned brown with sediment from landslides and was full of floating debris, including entire houses. The lack of potable water became a serious problem in one of Chile’s rainiest regions. It has been estimated that about 40% of the houses in Valdivia were destroyed, leaving 20,000 people homeless. The most affected structures were those built of concrete, which in some cases collapsed completely due to lack of earthquake engineering. Traditional wooden houses fared better and were in many places left uninhabitable but without collapse.

Chile Earthquake of 2010 Over 700 people died The 8.8 quake was felt as far away as Sao Paulo in Brazil, 1800 miles East An 8.8 earthquake is more powerful than the largest nuclear bomb ever tested. Aftershocks in the magnitude of 6.0 and above Newly built apartment buildings slumped and fell. Flames devoured a prison and the prisoners escaped. No more Rule of Law, people began to steal from supermarkets and stores.

Cost and Damages Caused widespread damage to hospitals, schools, roads, bridges and commercial buildings. Over 500,000 homes destroyed and over 2 million people were affected by the quake. Cost insurers up to 7 billion in repairs to homes. Total of 30 billion in reconstruction efforts.

How Prepared was Chile? Chile is located in the “Ring of Fire” an area of frequent earthquake and volcanic eruptions. Government put greater emphasis on strict earthquake resistant buildings. Older structures, which could not cope with earthquakes were destroyed or replaced with sounder buildings. As a result, there were fewer deaths compared to the Haitian earthquake even though it was much larger earthquake.

Fun Facts Conception, the nearest city to the epicenter, moved 10 feet to the west during the quake according to GPA measurements. The capital city of Santiago moved 11 inches to the left and even Buenos Aires, 800 miles away in Argentina, shifted an inch. Chiles earthquake will likely promote a legacy of volcanic explosions.

Economic Strain from 2010 Earthquake However, the damage to the country's infrastructure was significant, and President Michelle Bachelet called a state of emergency. The physical destruction included damage to the country's roads, ports, commercial buildings and housing. However, Chile's sound macroeconomic policies under the Bachelet administration created a savings fund, providing around $15 billion, which allowed the new government to face this tragedy with resolve and immediacy. Upon the news that several mines belonging to both state-owned Codelco and privately owned companies had closed, international copper prices surged on March 1 during early trading in London, and receded after Codelco announced that it would be able to meet contractual obligations with production from unaffected mines. The halt in production was a result of power outages caused by the earthquake, rather than physical damage to mining sites. Chile's copper mines are located mostly in the northern part of the country, so affected mines and ports in the south should have a limited impact on copper delivery.

Statistics of the two Earthquakes 1960 at Valdivia magnitude 9.5 2010 at Concepcion magnitude 8.8 Magnitude 9.5 - most powerful earthquake ever recorded. Approximately 1,655 killed. 3,000 injured. 2,000,000 homeless. $550 million damage in the south. Caused severe landslides - some so large, altered courses of rivers - new lakes formed because rivers were damaged due to landslides. Many aftershocks - 5 greater than magnitude 7.0 . Caused a tsunami - 61 deaths,$75 million damage in Hawaii. 138 deaths,$50 million damage in Japan. 32 dead/missing,Philippines. West coast of the U.S. $500,000 damage. 370,000 homes were damaged or destroyed. The government plans to spend more than $2.5 billion over the next two years to rebuild 300,000 houses, as well as hospitals, schools and roads. Repairing all the damage will take three to four years. It ranks as the sixth largest earthquake ever to be recorded on a seismograph. The earthquake triggered a tsunami which devastated several coastal towns in south-central Chile. Tsunami warnings were issued in 53 countries. Earthquake’s losses to economy of Chile are estimated at US $15–30 billion. $66.7 million damage was done to Japan’s fishery business. On 10 March, Swiss Reinsurance Co. estimated that the Chilean quake would cost the insurance industry between 4 and 7 billion dollars.

Earthquake Effects The problem with earthquakes is they are rarely occur without having some serious side effects including Tsunamis Volcanoes

Live Footage http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBdvvXyS-r4

Reference Page http://www.china.org.cn/world/chilequake/2010-03/03/content_19511084.htm http://www.livescience.com/6187-13-crazy-earthquake-facts.html http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/events/1960_05_22.php http://geology.com/records/largest-earthquake/