Chilean Earthquake Case Study

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Earthquakes
The earth is a very unique place with very intense catastrophes that occur throughout its lifespan. Some of these catalysts have the ability to completely alter the earth in ways that no man made invention could do. Earthquakes are among those catastrophes that cause unimaginable amounts of damage in what seems like no time at all. Earthquakes are caused by a collision of two plates in the earth. The collision will then send seismic waves across the surface of the earth destroying anything in its path. When earthquakes occur in the ocean, the collision can create a fault in the earth 's floor. The pressure from the seismic waves, combined with the shifting of plates will typically causes tsunamis as well.
A way that the severity …show more content…

This quake was documented on 22 of May 1960 and was a magnitude of 9.2 by the U.S. Geological Survey and was said to be the largest earthquake of the 20th century (Lutgens, Tarbuck, & Tasa, 2015). The earthquake started off of the coast of Chile, and sent the seismic force inward toward the city of Valdivia. The fault where the plates collided to cause this earthquake was estimated to be anywhere from 560-620 miles long, and ran across the stretch of the Nazca …show more content…

Once the earthquake hit, 15 hours after, it created tsunamis, which swept over coastal areas of Hawaii. It destroyed buildings and facilities along the shoreline. The effects of the tsunami caused by this earthquake caused millions of dollars of damage to Hilo Bay on the main island in Hawaii (Fujii, & Satake, 2013). The force of the earthquake was large enough to force this tidal wave all the way across Hawaii and into the Japanese islands. The main island that was hit with the tsunami was the Japanese island of Honshu, the effect of the wave hit this island almost 22 hours after the original earthquake off of the shores of Chile. On the alternate side of the wave, off of Long Beach, California, boats and ships were greatly damaged however no deaths were recorded in this area. Although it is not confirmed, two days later a volcano by the name of Cordon-Caulle erupted in Los Lagos after 40 years of inactivity (Fujii, & Satake, 2013).. The effects of the earthquake are believed to be what has caused the eruption creating an even larger death

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