Safest cities from natural disasters

[bob rulz]

It would be entirely possible for a maginitude 9 earthquake in San Francisco or Los Angeles to set of an aftershock in the other cities though, isn't it? I'm not an expert on the San Andreas Fault (only the Wasatch Fault...).

[hkskyline]

Originally Posted by bob rulz

It would be entirely possible for a maginitude 9 earthquake in San Francisco or Los Angeles to set of an aftershock in the other cities though, isn't it? I'm not an expert on the San Andreas Fault (only the Wasatch Fault...).

Yes, but I don't think a quake in either SF or LA can trigger a huge aftershock in the other city. I don't think the plate ruptures / pressure points in SF and LA are related. In order for both cities to be affected by a significant quake / related aftershock, the whole stretch of plates will need to move. I doubt that will ever happen in a short period of time.

[Erebus555]

There was a programme on TV I watched and this was supported by a professor I am friends with which says the earthquake will most likely hit the northerly part of the fault and aftershocks will continue south along the fault. This could, therefore, affect both cities quite possibly... But then, I am not an expert on the fault so I do not have much scientific knowledge on this.

[schreiwalker]

I'm pretty sure that the geology between the two cities (namely mountains) would prevent serious earthquake effects from spreading between the two cities. I don't know anything about earthquakes starting a domino effect of other earthquakes. I've never heard about that happening simultaneously.

That being said, if a big one happens in Missouri, the effects would be felt a thousand miles away. In 1812 three massive earthquakes there caused widespread damage and even caused church bells to ring in boston. They weren't an instant domino, it took a couple months between each. but people think they were at least 7.6 and maybe into the upper 8s on the richter scale.

This map below highlights the different effects of practically identical earthquakes in different geologic places. Red indicates structural damage while yellow indicates observed shaking. The LA earthquake was the 1994 Northridge quake and the Missouri one was from 1895 in some place called Charleston, MO. LA is confined by hard mountains, MO is surrounded by loose sediment.

[hkskyline]

It makes sense that a quake in one part of the fault may result in aftershocks nearby along the fault. In fact, volcanic and seismic activities in the same region often correlate. However, is it likely that SF and LA both sit on the same weak points on their faults?

[hkskyline]

Study: San Andreas fault overdue for quake
By ALICIA CHANG, AP Science Writer
June 21, 2006

New earthquake research confirms the southern end of the San Andreas fault near Los Angeles is overdue for a Big One. The lower section of the fault has not produced a major earthquake in more than three centuries.

The new study, which analyzed 20 years of data and is considered one of the most detailed analyses yet, found that stress has been building up since then, and that the fault could rupture at any moment.

"The southern section of the fault is fully loaded for the next big event," said geophysicist Yuri Fialko of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla.

Predicting exactly when that might happen, however, is beyond scientists' ability.

The analysis was published in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature.

Experts have estimated that a quake on the southern San Andreas of magnitude-7.6 or greater could kill thousands of people in the densely populated greater Los Angeles area and cause tens of billions of dollars in damage.

It was the 800-mile San Andreas fault, which runs down California like a scar, that caused the 1906 San Francisco earthquake that led to about 3,000 deaths.

But scientists know very little about the 100-mile dormant southern segment, which slices through Southern California from San Bernardino, east of Los Angeles, to near the Mexican border.

The section last popped in 1690, producing an estimated 7.7-magnitude quake, but caused little injury or damage because hardly anyone lived there at the time.

Using satellite radar and global positioning data, Fialko measured the movement of the southern San Andreas between 1985 and 2005. Small movements along a fault can relieve strain. Calculating those subtle motions allows scientists to figure out how much strain is building up.

Fialko found that the southern end of the fault has shown little movement and that significant strain is building up. The fault's slip rate, or average annual movement, was measured to be about an inch a year — similar to previous estimates.

Surprisingly, Fialko found the two sides of the southern San Andreas behaved differently, with one side showing more flexibility than the other. This could help scientists understand potential earthquake risks, he said.

Ken Hudnut, a U.S. Geological Survey geophysicist in Pasadena, who had no role in the study, said the latest research reaffirms the need to study the mysterious southern San Andreas more closely.

In the fall, Hudnut will head a $240,000 project that would conduct tests on the southern segment to get a better idea of the threat it poses.

___

On the Net:

U.S. Geological Survey: http://www.usgs.gov

Scripps Institution of Oceanography: http://www.sio.ucsd.edu

[Erebus555]

I read that story too in the Metro. It's very worrying.

[Rishab_Paudel]

Probably Estonia, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Andorra. But natural disasters kills several people worldwide. Below is link providing natural disasters so far in 2012 and a lot. Is not a good sign!
http://www.disaster-report.com

[aaabbbccc]

Morocco has Earthquakes
Agadir in 1960 was a major earthquake that killed over 12,000 people
There are faults that could go at anytime
Flooding is a major issue , at times it can rain like crazy , in 2010 Casablanca received over 25 inches of rain in 3 days
droughts is also common and once every 50 years there are these horrible dust storms with winds reaching over 100 KM /H plus

[tita01]

Safest 4 me

Vientiane - Laos
Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia
Brasilia - Brazil
Paris- France
London , UK
Ottawa, Canada
Cape Town , South Africa
Moscow , Russia
Georgetown ,Guyana
Chicago,US

[poshbakerloo]

Manchester, England is safe from pretty much anything. Never gets too cold in the winter, never gets too hot in the summer. The rain is just an average amount, no thunder storms, no tornadoes etc

[the spliff fairy]

We do get hurricanes tho, every 300 years. The last one in 1703 killed about 15,000, with the Thames blocked by 3000 shipwrecks.

In 1987 a hurricane force storm hit the country again - technically not a hurricane but with hurrican strength winds - killing 19 (thankfully as it was during the night) and felling 15 million trees. This one on 300 year 'storm of the century' hit again - in 1990, only 3 years later killing 47.

Also UK has more tornadoes per sq mile than anywhere else in the world, though theyre not often as strong as the mahoosive ones in the US.

[IrishMan2010]

Dublin.

[nicholasrudar]

Honolulu, Hawaii or Dubai, UAE

[aaabbbccc]

Casablanca , Morocco flooding is the main issue once in a while but other than that , it is safe in term of natural disasters , however the possibility of an earthquake is not 0 % , there was a major earthquake back in the 1700's that flatten the city

[zaphod]

At least with tornadoes the damage is very localized. While they are devastating to anyone living in the path, its rarely more than a mile wide.

I find Earthquakes and Hurricanes more frightening because they will damage entire cities or regions and people can be left without electricity or water for weeks or months.

[rider2]

Toronto.

[*Jarrod]

I think Edmonton is fairly safe... Tornadoes are fairly rare (with really one exception)... The only real thing is the cold/blizzard conditions.

[koolio]

Yeah Calgary and Edmonton seem fairly safe to me.

[WrathChild]

Buenos Aires only gets the occasional flooding and some electric storms (that can be quite strong actually) where it gets midnight dark at noon (they're not that usual though).

This storm fucked everything up this year.



Oh and we also get hail storms.