Earthquake Richlands, VA (Richmond, Charlottesville, Springfield: apartment, houses, construction)

[KewGee]

Sorry, I meant for the thread to say Richlands not New Richlands.

Yesterday I just heard about the New Madrid fault that they claim when it lets loose will totally devastate Memphis and many other areas hundreds of miles away will be effected. I read about it on the city-data forum for TN. The article is more than scary. It is potentially worse than any that would hit CA because of the difference in the ground and therefore, the same intensity would be magnified greatly as opposed to one in CA.

I just looked up recent earthquakes and see that one registered a 3.8 and occurred on Thanksgiving 8 miles northwest of Richland, VA.

Do you guys worry about such a thing in this area because of the fault mentioned above? I'm from earthquake country in CA (living in tornado country TX now) and have been looking at places in the mountains of various states in your area and don't want to have to put up with earthquakes or the potential of one again.

Any comments would be appreciated?

[htlong]

amj,
i have never heard anyone mention the big one happening here in va, most people think the blue ridge and alleganny mts were formed by the glaciers, but they were formed from earthquakes .
when it comes to worrying about things around here it would be hurricanes and tornados at the top of the list.

[dullnboring]

Interesting. I hadn't heard about this. Once every few years, we hear about a "sizable" (by East Coast standards) earthquake, usually in the areas around Charlottesville, registering usually around a 3.5 on the richter scale. Virginia, like much of the East Coast is categorized as having a moderate earthquake risk and the most powerful earthquake ever to strike was a 5.8 earthquake in Giles County in 1897. Central Virginia has the most seismic activity. I just did a bit of a google search and discovered that since 1977 there have been 160 earthquakes in Virginia, only 16% of them being felt, or roughly two per year. Like I said, these are small earthquakes, twos and threes on the richter scale not causing any sort of damage. There was an earthquake 30 miles from Richmond in 2003 that registered a 4.5 on the richter scale.

Earthquakes aren't something that I worry about living here. There is a very small risk, just as there is most places. No place is immune from natural disasters and there could always be a fluke earthquake or tornado or snowstorm wherever you live, so I feel that the risk in Virginia isn't so much as to give it more than a passing thought.

[KewGee]

Thanks htlong and dullnboring for your comments.

I really didn't worry about earthquakes when I lived in CA, but I was in a pretty scary one in 1971 and I must say that we were all on edge for many months. There were so many aftershocks.

I hate the thought of tornadoes and know they can happen anywhere. I live in Central TX and of course, the risk here is great. I was hoping to find a place in the mountains where they're few and far between.

Thanks again!

[MoMark]

Originally Posted by amjb

Sorry, I meant for the thread to say Richlands not New Richlands.

Yesterday I just heard about the New Madrid fault that they claim when it lets loose will totally devastate Memphis and many other areas hundreds of miles away will be effected. I read about it on the city-data forum for TN. The article is more than scary. It is potentially worse than any that would hit CA because of the difference in the ground and therefore, the same intensity would be magnified greatly as opposed to one in CA.

I just looked up recent earthquakes and see that one registered a 3.8 and occurred on Thanksgiving 8 miles northwest of Richland, VA.

Do you guys worry about such a thing in this area because of the fault mentioned above? I'm from earthquake country in CA (living in tornado country TX now) and have been looking at places in the mountains of various states in your area and don't want to have to put up with earthquakes or the potential of one again.

Any comments would be appreciated?

The Weather Channel just aired recently a "It Could Happen Tomorrow" episode of what a major earthquake along the New Madrid seismic zone could do. It apparently is pretty deep under thousands of years of sediment from near Memphis, Tennessee, north along the Mississippi River through the Missouri Bootheel, and then up to St. Louis or so. The fault itself is basically uncharted because it is almost a mile or more under the sediment, whereas in California and other areas the faults are often broken to the surface and visible. I know when I lived in Daly City, CA. as a kid, there were houses that strode the actual San Andreas Fault and you could see the geographic reality of it, same through the peninsula along Crystal Lake Reservoir, etc. But the New Madrid Fault is hidden. The earthquakes that occured in that area in 1811 and 1812 were estimated to be near the intensity of the Great Alaskan Earthquake of 1964, stronger than the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake. They were accompanied by hundreds of smaller earthquakes and the ground lurched and shook often for two years before settling down again. The earthquakes of 1811 and 1812 were felt from Boston to Chicago, Washington D.C. and outwards. The ground is much different than California you're right. In California you can have a major earthquake and people two hundred miles away will have no clue. The quake you mention you went through was the San Fernando Earthquake of 1971. My sister went through the Northridge Earthquake and I went through the Loma Prieta Earthquake while at work at Stonestown Galleria in southwest San Francisco on Oct. 17th, 1989 (my after school job). I was helping a customer when we heard a weird "ping" and then the place began lurching and jolting, jumping, weaving back and forth, then the other direction. Glass was shattering in storefronts, people were running and screaming..I thought it was the BIG ONE and curled up into a ball on the floor and awaited my fate scared to death. My mom was in a grocery store in Oakdale,CA., 100 miles to the east in the foothills leading to Sonora, CA. and she and everyone in the supermarket felt it. They all assumed it was in San Francisco...and..when she got back home, my dad who'd also felt it already had the news on showing the Marina district on fire and the Bay Bridge sector that collapsed and the terrible collapse of the Cypress double-decker viaduct part of the Nimitz Freeway of 880 leading from the Bay Bridge approach in Oakland. Of course they were petrified for my safety as the phone lines were down and I couldn't call out. Needless to say, after that experience, I never was blase about earthquakes any longer after that!!! If you look at predicted seismic shaking maps of what such repeat earthquakes of the scale of 1811 or 1812 would do nowadays, you would have almost complete destruction in Memphis, terrible destruction in St. Louis, and all the cities along the river in western Tennessee, eastern Arkansas, the Missouri side, western Kentucky and up into southern Illinois would be badly damaged. Cape Girardeau would probably be destroyed along with Cairo, Illinois. The Mississippi River could be thrown from it's banks as it was in 1811/12, and the earthquakes could be followed by levee breaks and extensive flooding as well. And..it could go on periodically for years. Yet, it's also noted from digs that quakes of that size occur about every 300 years, so we're only 200 years after the two biggies. I thought about the danger of the New Madrid fault when I moved to Missouri, but I was comforted by the fact that I live on a solid rock shield called the Ozark Plateau and the estimated shaking in a worst-case earthquake along the New Madrid here in the Springfield area is a 5. I can live with that. Been through dozens of those.

[KewGee]

Hey MoMark,

Thanks for the great information.

Yes, the quake I was in on February 9, 1971 was the San Fernando Valley quake centered in Sylmar. I lived in Burbank at the time. I had just moved out of my parent's home on February 1 to my own little 2nd floor apartment.

I always had my alarm set for 6 a.m. to get me up for work and I believe the quake hit about 5 minutes before that. I was sound asleep and everything on the shelf above my bed fell on me. The noises outside were horrific. Transformers were exploding everywhere and it was like a lightening show outside. I heard the woman who lived below me screaming bloody murder.

The bed was swaying like crazy and I was panicked. I picked up the phone and dialed my boyfriend's number and put the receiver to my ear and then realized the phone lines were down. Also, there was no electrical power. I couldn't see a thing but the building was swaying and moving like crazy and I knew I needed to get out of there. I felt in the closet for my coat, put it on over my nightgown, and practically flew down the stairs. I saw a guy in the courtyard and yelled to him asking if I could go to his apartment. Shoot, he could have been Jack The Ripper but at that point, I didn't care.

He said yes and that his wife and son were under the table. Just about the time I got under the table with her and the baby, a terrific aftershock came and we were all just scared to pieces. Aftershocks went on for over 3 months after the quake; I remember I lost a lot of sleep at that time.

I could go on and on about that morning with more happening, but it would be a novel. Thanks for "listening."

They claim the New Madrid fault will probably let loose within the next 25 years, but they've also been saying forever that CA is going to end up in the Pacific. These disasters will probably occur one day, but I hope it isn't for many years.

[MoMark]

Originally Posted by amjb

Hey MoMark,

Thanks for the great information.

Yes, the quake I was in on February 9, 1971 was the San Fernando Valley quake centered in Sylmar. I lived in Burbank at the time. I had just moved out of my parent's home on February 1 to my own little 2nd floor apartment.

I always had my alarm set for 6 a.m. to get me up for work and I believe the quake hit about 5 minutes before that. I was sound asleep and everything on the shelf above my bed fell on me. The noises outside were horrific. Transformers were exploding everywhere and it was like a lightening show outside. I heard the woman who lived below me screaming bloody murder.

The bed was swaying like crazy and I was panicked. I picked up the phone and dialed my boyfriend's number and put the receiver to my ear and then realized the phone lines were down. Also, there was no electrical power. I couldn't see a thing but the building was swaying and moving like crazy and I knew I needed to get out of there. I felt in the closet for my coat, put it on over my nightgown, and practically flew down the stairs. I saw a guy in the courtyard and yelled to him asking if I could go to his apartment. Shoot, he could have been Jack The Ripper but at that point, I didn't care.

He said yes and that his wife and son were under the table. Just about the time I got under the table with her and the baby, a terrific aftershock came and we were all just scared to pieces. Aftershocks went on for over 3 months after the quake; I remember I lost a lot of sleep at that time.

I could go on and on about that morning with more happening, but it would be a novel. Thanks for "listening."

They claim the New Madrid fault will probably let loose within the next 25 years, but they've also been saying forever that CA is going to end up in the Pacific. These disasters will probably occur one day, but I hope it isn't for many years.

Yeah, once you've been through a major earthquake where major damage occurs and you really don't know if you're going to make it, your attitude changes. I was blase about earthquakes before 89. I'd shake in bed and just ignore it. I thought...isn't that so California charming....
However, after Loma Prieta in 89, I slept fully dressed with my tennis shoes on for months to be ready to scram out. I purposely walked on streets away from parapet overhangs and brick buildings (San Francisco has all that stuff). And then in 1990, we had a day where earthquakes started about 6am, just a quick tremble, then about every half hour through noon we got bigger and bigger shakes culminating in a 5.0 just after noon that had us running for the doorways. That was scary because once you've been through a biggie, you know that there's no way to judge what's coming and it could be brief and small, or it could be building for a huge earthquake..you just don't know. Then in 2000 I got awakened by the Napa Valley Quake at 1am. The house shook pretty good and since I was getting ready to sell, I was worried my old house wouldn't stay on the foundation (unbolted 1929 construction) and I lay in bed shaking back and forth praying to God not to allow the house to get shifted. I'm no earthquake fan! I actually wrote all about my 89 experience almost immediately after the quake while it was fresh and it goes on for pages and pages, the fires, smoke, broken glass, houses with porches broken off, no power, people milling in the streets, etc. It was such a strange aftermath and I captured it all from my vantage on paper and still have it. Sounds like you've got a short novel too

[KewGee]

Originally Posted by MoMark

Yeah, once you've been through a major earthquake where major damage occurs and you really don't know if you're going to make it, your attitude changes. I was blase about earthquakes before 89. I'd shake in bed and just ignore it. I thought...isn't that so California charming....
However, after Loma Prieta in 89, I slept fully dressed with my tennis shoes on for months to be ready to scram out. I purposely walked on streets away from parapet overhangs and brick buildings (San Francisco has all that stuff). And then in 1990, we had a day where earthquakes started about 6am, just a quick tremble, then about every half hour through noon we got bigger and bigger shakes culminating in a 5.0 just after noon that had us running for the doorways. That was scary because once you've been through a biggie, you know that there's no way to judge what's coming and it could be brief and small, or it could be building for a huge earthquake..you just don't know. Then in 2000 I got awakened by the Napa Valley Quake at 1am. The house shook pretty good and since I was getting ready to sell, I was worried my old house wouldn't stay on the foundation (unbolted 1929 construction) and I lay in bed shaking back and forth praying to God not to allow the house to get shifted. I'm no earthquake fan! I actually wrote all about my 89 experience almost immediately after the quake while it was fresh and it goes on for pages and pages, the fires, smoke, broken glass, houses with porches broken off, no power, people milling in the streets, etc. It was such a strange aftermath and I captured it all from my vantage on paper and still have it. Sounds like you've got a short novel too

We moved to Texas in 1978 and now instead of earthquakes, we have tornadoes. I don't know which is worse. One thing about quakes, one doesn't know when they'll happen and they really don't happen that often and with potential tornadoes, one gets warned that the "conditions are favorable" and that alone puts me on edge. It's scary although I've never been in one in the 28 years I've lived here. I've taken cover many times in a closet, bathroom, hall, etc. Then about 9 or 10 years ago, I finally had a storm cellar poured. It has come in handy for me and the neighbors.

I remember when the quake hit in 1989. I was at the middle school at my son's football game (they played on Tuesday nights) and word spread quickly about the disaster. One reason it spread so fast I think is because of the World Series going on with the Oakland Athletics and the SF Giants if I remember correctly. At that time I thought to myself, "I'm glad I don't live in CA anymore." Watching the coverage on TV was so awful.

My cousin lives near Northridge and she said that one was absolutely terrifying. That TV coverage reminded me again I don't want to live in earthquake country. But then again, I guess everywhere has its disasters.

That's cool that you kept a journal about the 1989 quake, as cool as keeping records on a quake can be. They really are terrible.

[theburro]

From what I could gather, there was some mystery surrounding the seismic event you mentioned. Most observers agree it was a collapse of an abandoned, underground coal mine. These mines are like honey-combs covering millions of acres on multiple levels. If large areas of the roof came down in one large event, it would certainly register on seismographs.

Virginia (mid--Atlantic generally) is geologically stable with maybe one mild earthquake every 10 years or so strong enough to break a wine glass.

Hope this was helpful.

[KewGee]

Originally Posted by theburro

From what I could gather, there was some mystery surrounding the seismic event you mentioned. Most observers agree it was a collapse of an abandoned, underground coal mine. These mines are like honey-combs covering millions of acres on multiple levels. If large areas of the roof came down in one large event, it would certainly register on seismographs.

Virginia (mid--Atlantic generally) is geologically stable with maybe one mild earthquake every 10 years or so strong enough to break a wine glass.

Hope this was helpful.

Thank you for your helpful post. One earthquake every 10 years beats the heat in Texas EVERY summer!!