Summary of proposed research
Seismic hazard analysis is an important tool in mitigating risks in the event of a disastrous seismic event like an earthquake. This can be done by studying the behaviour of the soil in locations that are within seismically active regions using several geophysical methods. This project employs the use the cost-effective microtremor method in studying the site response in Kathmandu, Nepal, following the April 25, 2015 M7.8 Gorkha. Analysis of the field data will yield information that could be used by the Government and people of Kathmandu, Nepal, in reviewing their building construction codes and other policies to minimize casualties in the event of an earthquake. This is very important considering the location of Kathmandu which is within the seismically active Himalayas.
Statement of the problem
Kathmandu lies within the tectonically active Himalayan mountain range, which is a continental-continental convergent boundary. Kathmandu is located in an approximately 500 m deep sedimentary basin, which is likely to amplify earthquake shaking (Paudyal et al, 2012). More than 9000 people were killed and about 22000 injured in Nepal during the magnitude 7.8 Gorkha earthquake on April 25, 2015, and the M 7.3 aftershock on May 12, 2015, (Nepal National Planning Commission, 2015). Over 500,000 buildings were either damaged or completely destroyed during the event with the damages estimated to exceed $6.7 billion (USD) (Nepal National Planning
On January 12th, 2010, the small country of Haiti was hit by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake that devastated the city of Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas (Haiti earthquake of 2010, 2015). The 30-second disaster was just the beginning of a collection of aftershocks that then struck the country relentlessly for days (Haiti earthquake of 2010, 2015). Many areas were reduced to rubble leaving approximately one million Haitians homeless and 350 000 dead and another 300 000 injured (Haiti earthquake of 2010, 2015). The ill-prepared country was sitting on two tectonic plates- the Caribbean and the North American, where there was slippage resulting in the earthquake (KS3 Bitesize Geography). Following the environmental catastrophe, the international community responded, and a relief effort began (Haiti earthquake of 2010, 2015).
Earthquakes have afflicted the world since its inception. The sudden release of energy from volcanoes or displacing of earth plates can result in disasters of extreme magnitude. These usually naturally occurring phenomenon have been responsible from wiping out entire towns throughout history and until today continue to produce major loss of life and infrastructure. It can take years for a city or country to recover from a major event of this kind and when a third world country is involved, the result is usually exponentially worse than in a developed country. In the past decades Japan, Chile and Haiti have suffered the devastation an earthquake produces. This document will concentrate in Haiti, a small country in the Caribbean. On
On August 24, 2014 a magnitude 6.0 earthquake occurred in and around the city of Napa, CA. The earthquake killed one person and injured over 150 people. And these people were treated at Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa [1]. More and more earthquakes occurred on this earth. So this grasps people’s attention.
In recorded history, there have been 151 earthquakes in Nevada that were a magnitude of 3.5 or higher. As previously mentioned, the mountain ranges of Nevada are typically bound on one side or the other by a fault. There are quaternary faults that range in ages from less than 150 years to around 1.8 million years in existence. The property damage in Nevada from earthquakes was .2 million dollars between 1196 and 2014 based on information from department of energy for the state. As we studied in our textbook, earthquakes can by a number of things, such as shifting faults, or volcanic
An earthquake is where two transform plate boundaries slide and creak the earth. This is what happened in the Philippines. Although it was in 2013 the people are still in need of help to get back to their daily lives. The Philippines earthquake had a magnitude of 7.1. This earthquake was gigantic, and it took down many buildings that were in its path. Lucky the children were not in school that day because of the Muslim holidays the earthquake caused the school to collaspe. If the children were in school, then it would have killed most of the kids.There were 2,100 aftershocks. The day of the quake was October 15, 2013. People respond to a natural disaster by gathering materials and donations, spreading the word, and the government's aid.
A ‘hazard’ can be defined as a geophysical process operating within the lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere or biosphere which could potentially lead to the loss of human life or property. However, an earthquake only becomes hazardous and therefore needs management if it occurs within close proximity to a vulnerable population. To some extent, any human settlement around the world situated close to or on top of an area of seismic activity is vulnerable. However, not all nations suffer equal devastation.
Thank you, Ms. Leona Graham (mayor), for the opportunity to provide an assessment report for Hazard City. This report will provide an assessment on structural damage of an Intensity IX earthquake, and emergency housing needs. It will also identify actions homeowners can use to help prevent future structural damages, and give more information on possible effects of an Intensity IX earthquake. The assessment report will identify danger of a failing dam, and provide further understanding of the elements which will include an emergency plan. The table that follows is an assessment of the number of people needing emergency housing due to an Intensity IX earthquake.
This land assessment will recommend which community would be the best and safest place to live. Hazard City is made of up of five communities. Riverside is a mobile home community with most of the current homes located upon the sandy soils of the floodplain. Downtown consists nearly of one-to-three story buildings constructed of unreinforced brick and masonry. Ralston contains mostly large wood-framed, single family, Victorian-style homes built in the late 1800's. Hickory Estates contains of single-family, multi-story, wood-frame homes that were all built before World War II. Walnut Heights is a planned, gated residential community of single-family homes founded in 1981.
Maryland has weak geological features fundamental to produce earthquakes. The state lies towards the central North American plate and is a long distance from plate boundaries, subduction zones, and hotspots. Those geological features release vibration movement towards the Earth's crust creating earthquakes. However, Maryland has a moderate Earthquake hazard risk, and it has a reasonable chance of experiencing higher earthquakes. The current U.S. National Seismic Hazard map reveals that most of the state is part of the hazard risk zone which Engineers and planners need to form better solutions to prevent future earthquake hazards.
A hazard can best be defined as a 'situation that poses a level of threat to life, health, property or the environment.' The overall impact of earthquakes as a natural hazard varies greatly from one place and timeframe to another. As do the types of hazards, which are categorised into primary and secondary. Primary hazards are created by the direct seismic energy of an earthquake; this could include liquefaction, slope failure and tsunamis. These primary hazards can in turn trigger secondary hazards such as floods, fires, disease and destabilisation of infrastructure. A number of factors play a part in determining the severity
The Oral and Dental Hospital of Jenderal Soedirman University was built in 2008. This hospital’s building consists of 4 stories equipped with inpatient rooms, X-ray rooms, and laboratory. It is expected that with a main function as a public facility with a large number of people doing activities within it, the building has a high level of security when an earthquake occurred. The aim of this study is to perform a preliminary seismic hazard assessment, i.e. an evaluation using a Rapid Visual Screening method and a tier 1 evaluation using FEMA 310. The results of the Rapid Visual Screening were a final level 1 score compared with a cut-off score of +2.00. If the final level 1 score were less than or equal to +2.00, the building requires the tier
Earthquake Hazards occur when there are adverse effects on human activities. This can include surface faulting, ground shaking and liquefaction. In this essay I will be discussing the factors that affect earthquakes, whether human such as population density, urbanisation and earthquake mitigation or physical such as liquefaction, magnitude, landslides and proximity to the focus.
Volcanoes and Earthquakes are two of the most intriguing natural disasters that can occur on earth. Unlike hurricanes and tornadoes, they can awaken at almost any point in time throughout the year. These two natural disasters are also different from others because they occur on the layers of the earth itself. Volcanoes, while large to us, are actually small, conical patches of earth that spurt and ooze hot molten lava from the core, and can destroy areas of land triple their size. Earthquakes, on the other hand, are severe jolts felt on land due to the movement of earths tectonic plates. Some may describe earthquakes as being similar to riding a bike down a flight of stairs. The impact of an earthquakes can take down even the largest buildings and strongest structures. All natural disasters can have damaging effects on land, some more than others, and all can be measured or predicted in different ways. Although earthquakes and volcanoes are similar to each other, the two are still very comparable. A few of these similarities and differences include the cause of their occurrence, and how their occurrence impacts the environment.
It’s recognized as the second deadliest earthquake in New Zealand following the 7.8 Hawkes bay Earthquake (Kaiser et al, 2012). The earthquake was first thought to be an aftershock of the 7.1 Darfield earthquake of September 2010 at the eastern edge. This was an area that originally was of a low earthquake occurrence rate since prior to 2011 there was no knowledge of a fault’s existence thus catching the New Zealand citizens off-guard. The Christchurch earthquake resulted in 185 casualties affecting more than 300,000 people (Kaiser et al, 2012). The earthquake first made contact with in the South Islands, only 10 km away from the center of Christchurch. Ground motions were unusually large near Christchurch measuring 2.2 g and 1.7g at the epicenter, the point directly above
In the U.S. alone, the average annual cost to repair damage caused by earthquakes is $4.4 billion USD. The worldwide figure is much larger than this but unquantifiable due to poorer countries unable to accurately determine the amount of damage that occurred. Year after year the cost of damages barely fluctuates from these ridiculously high figures and money must be pumped into repairing the damage done. Although a lot is being learnt about earthquakes and the fact that humans are now normally able to be alerted in time to evacuate the area the earthquake will affect, there have been no breakthroughs into reducing the amount of damage earthquakes cause to buildings and infrastructures.