NOTABLE HISTORIC AND FUTURE THREATENING EVENTS ALONG THE PACIFIC RING OF FIRE As of April 21, 2012 Walter Hays, Global Alliance for Disaster Reduction, University of North Carolina, USA
RING OF FIRE
1,000 ACTIVE VOLCANOES ALONG THE RING OF FIRE
MANY HISTORIC EARTHQUAKES ALONG THE RING OF FIRE
SOME OF THE HISTORIC EVENTS ALONG THE RING OF FIRE
NOTABLE HISTORIC EVENTS ALONG THE RING OF FIRE THE PHILIPPINES: MOUNT PINATUBO USA: NORTHRIDGE, CA EARTHQUAKE CHRISTCHURCH, NEW ZEALAND: EARTHQUAKES SENDAI, JAPAN: EARTHQUAKE AND TSUNAMI CHILE: VOLCANO PUYEUHE
THE PHILIPPINES: MT. PINATUBO: JUNE 15, 1991
Pinatubo was the second largest eruption of the 20 th century and the largest to impact a densely populated area.
NORTHRIDGE, CALIFORNIA EARTHQUAKE NORTHRIDGE, CALIFORNIA EARTHQUAKE 4:31 AM ON JANUARY 17, 1994 M 6.8 4:31 AM ON JANUARY 17, 1994 M 6.8
NORTHRIDGE EARTHQUAKE NORTHRIDGE EARTHQUAKE 57 DEATHS 9,000 INJURIES OVER $50 BILLION DAMAGE TRANSPORT- ATION SYSTEMS FAILED
CHRISTCHURCH, NEW ZEALAND: SEPT 2010 & FEB 2011 EARTHQUAKES
TWO EARTHQUAKES SEVERELY CUT NEW ZEALAND’S 2011 ECONOMIC GROWTH A DEEP (33 KM) M7.1 AND A SHALLOW (4 KM) M6.3 QUAKE SIX MONTHS APART COMBINE TO HALF NEW ZEALAND’S ECONOMIC GROWTH
M9.0 TOHOKU EARTHQUAKE/TSUNAMI IMPACTED JAPAN WITH THE TSUNAMI WAVES REACHING PACIFIC RIM COUNTRIES 4TH LARGEST QUAKE EVER 3 – 40 M TSUNAMI WAVES 2:46 pm MARCH 11, 2011
JAPAN: TSUNAMI FOLLOWING M9.0 EARTHQUAKE
CHILE’S VOLCANO PUYEHUE ERUPTED WITH A MASSIVE ASH CLOUD AND SPECTACULAR LIGHTNING JUNE 4, 2011
VOLCANO PUYEHUE’S ASH CLOUD: JUNE 4, 2011
PUYEHUE’S ASH CLOUD The ash cloud over the Southern Hemisphere has impacted Argentina and spread as far as South Africa and Australia.
PUYEHUE’S ASH CLOUD The ash cloud over the Southern Hemisphere impacted Argentina and spread as far as South Africa and Australia.
NOTABLE HISTORIC EVENTS ALONG THE RING OF FIRE CHILE: EARTHQUAKE AND TSUNAMI COLOMBIA: NEVADA DEL RUIZ
M8.8 EARTHQUAKE STRIKES CENTRAL CHILE: 3:34 am on February 27, 2010 Subduction Zone Quake 500 Times More Energy than the M7.0 Haiti Quake 800+ Deaths; 500+ Injured Numerous Aftershocks Tsunami Waves Travel Across Pacific Estimated Loss: $30 Billion
The Chilean people had to cope with the demands associated with: 1) a mega-quake, 2) a vigorous aftershock sequence with large events, 3) tsunami wave run up, 4) looting of the affluent sector, and 5) recovery after the loss of 15 percent of the GDP.
It was a catastrophic experience, even though Chile has experienced many past earthquakes, has implemented a modern building code, and was well prepared to respond to all aspects of the emergency.
COLOMBIA: NEVADA DEL RUIZ, A 1988 DISASTER
The lahar generated by the eruption of Nevada del Ruiz buried 25,000 people in the city of Armero as they slept.
SOME OF THE THREATENING EVENTS ALONG THE RING OF FIRE
THREATENING EVENTS ALONG THE RING OF FIRE JAPAN: MOUNT FUJI JAPAN: TOKAI EARTHQUAKE AND TSUNAMI USA: NORTHERN CALIFORNIA USA: SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA USA: CASCADIA SUBDUCTION ZONE
MOUNT FUJI: JAPAN; A THREAT TO TOKYO
Because of its location in the densely populated Bay area of 7 million people, an earthquake on the Hayward fault could be one of the USA's worst natural disasters.
A Hayward fault earthquake potentially affects 5 million people, and damages homes, schools, senior centers, hospitals, businesses, the Bay bridge, and the campus of UC Berkeley.
A M 7.0 earthquake on the Hayward fault will cause an estimated $210 billion dollars in damage. The region's transportation infrastructure and water delivery systems will take a major hit.
THE GREAT TOKAI EARTHQUAKE POSSIBLY THE WORLD’S FOREMOST IMPENDING EARTHQUAKE DISASTER FOR WHICH JAPAN HAS BEEN PREPARING FOR 25 YEARS
REGIONAL MAP
TOKAI EARTHQUAKE The Government of Japan expects its next great earthquake to be “the Tokai Earthquake.”
TOKAI EARTHQUAKE Estimated deaths — between 7,900 and 9,200 depending on the amount of advance warning and the time of day it occurs. Estimated property damage –- as much as $310 billion.
TOKAI EARTHQUAKE Landslides -- 6,449 specific locations Structures susceptible to quake-related fires – 58,402 specific houses
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA (LOS ANGELES AREA) EARTHQUAKE SCENARIO
The magnitude 7.8 scenario earthquake will cause about 1,800 deaths and $213 billion of economic losses.
CASCADIA SUBDUCTION ZONE
CASCADIA SUDUCTION ZONE
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON
CASCADIA SUBDUCTION ZONE The Cascadia subduction zone (CSZ), which extends from Vancouver Island to Cape Mendiceno, is capable of producing earthquakes of M8 to M9 and a destructive tsunami if the M > 8.0.
A M9.0 CSZ EARTHQUAKE Long-period waves will dominate the ground shaking of a M9.0 CSZ earthquake. Long-period ground shaking is very efficient in exciting tall buildings, long bridges, and long pipelines into vibration.
THREATENING EVENTS ALONG THE RING OF FIRE MEXICO: POPOCATEPETL USA: MOUNT RAINIER ECUADOR: SANGAY VANUATU: MOUNT YASUR GUATEMALA: SANTA MARIA
MEXICO’S POPOCATEPETL: APRIL 20
An estimated 5 million people in the states of Mexico, Puebla, and Morelos would be affected by a major eruption of the 17,778 ft Popocatepetl
MT RAINIER: TACOMA, WA
Tacoma, the capital city is at high risk when Rainier erupts
SANGAY, ECUADOR
Sangay’s steep-sided volcanic cone, which reaches a height of 17,158 feet (5,230 meters), has been characterized by: 1) a historical eruption in 1628, 2) more or less continuous eruptions from 1728 until 1916, and 3) continuous eruptions again from 1934 to the present.
MOUNT YASUR, VANUATU
Mount Yasur, an active volcano on Tanna Island and a part of the archipelago nation of Vanuatu in the South Pacific, has been erupting nearly continuously for over a century with strombolian- type eruptionsk, often occurring several times an hour.
SANTA MARIA, GUATEMALA
Santa Maria, a 12,375-foot (3,772- meter) tall stratovolcano, had a catastrophic eruption in 1902, one of the largest eruptions of the 20th century, that caused severe damage throughout southwestern Guatemala
SO--- IT’S STILL ALL ABOUT THE ART AND SCIENCE OF MAKING ALL CIRCUM-PACIFIC COMMUNITIES RESILIENT TO EARTHQUAKES AND VOLCANOES
MAKING THE RING OF FIRE’S FUTURE BETTER THAN ITS PAST UNDER- STAND IDENT- IFY HEAR PERSON- ALIZE ACT PERIOD OF INTEGRATION WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY 2012 PERIOD OF IMPLEMENTATION NOW