What is the most common type of earthquake damage?
Most earthquake damage results from the seismic waves passing beneath buildings, roads, and other structures. The primary earthquake hazard is surface rupture. It can be caused by vertical or horizontal movement on either side of a ruptured fault.
How do earthquakes destroy the Earth?
Earthquake destruction begins with the earth’s violent shaking that can rupture the earth, trigger landslides and turn the surface of the earth to liquid. The damaging shaking of major earthquakes can be felt hundreds of miles away. Ground Shaking & Structural Failure Ground shaking is the vibration of the ground during an earthquake.
What causes the most damage during a storm?
In the United States, many types of storms tend to prevail, causing destruction ranging from minimal to massive. Falling precipitation has the potential to lead to serious water damage. Homeowners should be prepared by understanding what causes the most damage during various storms. Thunderstorms are capable of producing hail of all sizes.
What is surface rupture and ground displacement?
Surface Rupture & Ground Displacement. The primary earthquake hazard is surface rupture. It can be caused by vertical or horizontal movement on either side of a ruptured fault. Ground displacement, which can affect large land areas, can produce severe damage to structures, roads, railways and pipelines.
What is the primary hazard of an earthquake?
How does an earthquake affect the Earth?
How long did the Ridgecrest earthquake last?
Why do earthquakes happen?
What is the most important secondary effect of the earthquakes?
What are the effects of surface rupture?
What is ground shaking?
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What type of earthquake causes the most damage?
S waves arrive next and cause a structure to vibrate from side to side. They are the most damaging waves, because buildings are more easily damaged from horizontal motion than from vertical motion.
What type of ground is best for earthquakes?
Good - bedrock (deep and unbroken rock formations)and stiff soils. These soil types are best since much less vibration is transferred through the foundation to the structure above.
Which type of foundation is more prone to earthquake damages?
Because a post-and-pier house has no continuous concrete-perimeter foundation, it is particularly vulnerable to shifting, and potentially collapsing, in an earthquake.
Why do soft soils amplify earthquakes?
1) The softness of the soil or rock beneath a site. As the waves pass from deeper harder to shallow softer rocks they slow down and get bigger in amplitude as the energy piles up. The softer the rock or soil under a site is, the larger the wave. Softer soils amplify ground motion.
What is the best base for an earthquake-proof building?
Wood and steel have more give than stucco, unreinforced concrete, or masonry, and they are favored materials for building in fault zones. Skyscrapers everywhere must be reinforced to withstand strong forces from high winds, but in quake zones, there are additional considerations.
Which foundation is safe during earthquake?
The design of earthquake-resistant base and foundation includes a solid reinforced concrete foundation slab with criss-cross strips, freely supported on an intermediate sandy cushion, which separates the soils from the foundation slab, and the channels around the foundation.
Which foundation is best for earthquake resistance?
Brick and concrete buildings have low ductility and therefore absorb very little energy. This makes them especially vulnerable in even minor earthquakes. Buildings constructed of steel-reinforced concrete, on the other hand, perform much better because the embedded steel increases the ductility of the material.
What foundation material is most stable during an earthquake?
steelBuilding a structure to withstand seismic waves starts with the right materials with the right properties, and steel is by far the most widely used material for building earthquake-resistant buildings. According to the World Steel Association, ductile buildings are safer as they dissipate energy from seismic waves.
What is the primary hazard of an earthquake?
The primary earthquake hazard is surface rupture. It can be caused by vertical or horizontal movement on either side of a ruptured fault. Ground displacement, which can affect large land areas, can produce severe damage to structures, roads, railways and pipelines.
How does an earthquake affect the Earth?
Earthquake destruction begins with the earth’s violent shaking that can rupture the earth, trigger landslides and turn the surface of the earth to liquid. The damaging shaking of major earthquakes can be felt hundreds of miles away.
How long did the Ridgecrest earthquake last?
The second quake with a magnitude 7.1 lasted 12 seconds and was felt by about 30 million people from Sacramento to San Diego. More than 6,000 homes lost power. The Ridgecrest earthquakes followed a 25-year "quiet period" after the Northridge earthquake.
Why do earthquakes happen?
Earthquakes produce sudden, rapid shaking of the earth caused by the shifting of rock beneath the earth’s surface. Earthquakes strike without warning, at any time of year, day or night. Avoid earthquake damage and injury.
What is the most important secondary effect of the earthquakes?
Earthquake damage from fires is the most important secondary effect. The Ridgecrest earthquakes that hit on July 4 and July 5, 2019 with a magnitude 6.4 and 7.1, respectively, were the most recent major earthquakes in Southern California. The second quake with a magnitude 7.1 lasted 12 seconds and was felt by about 30 million people ...
What are the effects of surface rupture?
Surface Rupture. The vibrations from an earthquake can lead to ground displacement and surface rupture. The surface rupture can cause other hazards, as well as damage to roads and buildings. In this example, the surface rupture has caused large cracks and the collapse of a paved road.
What is ground shaking?
Ground Shaking & Structural Failure. Ground shaking is the vibration of the ground during an earthquake. The shaking triggers other hazards such as liquefaction and landslides. Most earthquake damage results from the seismic waves passing beneath buildings, roads, and other structures.
What causes water damage in the US?
In the United States, many types of storms tend to prevail, causing destruction ranging from minimal to massive. Falling precipitation has the potential to lead to serious water damage. Homeowners should be prepared by understanding what causes the most damage during various storms.
What type of storms can cause water damage?
Water damage is likely to result from various types of storms. Hailstorms, thunderstorms, wind storms, ice storms, winter storms and tornadoes commonly lead to property damage. The resulting ruin gives water access into the interior parts of the home or commercial property.
What happens when a roof collapses?
A collapsed roof allows more than pests into the home. The gaping hole is a pathway for melting snow and slush. The inevitable outcome is interior water damage. Heavy snows also weigh down tree branches, which can break and fall onto nearby rooftops and cause roof damage.
How long does a hail storm last?
Hailstorms last about five minutes on average. Yet, hailstorms cause an estimated $1 billion in damage annually. Hail varies in size and hardness, leading to different sized dents and impressions on the roof. A rooftop damaged by hail can lead to roof leaks, and consequently, interior water damage.
What causes flash floods?
Flash flooding can occur in the wake of a thunderstorm. Slowly moving thunderstorms are the primary cause of most flash floods. Intense rains can lead to flash flooding within minutes or hours and trigger mud slides. Rising water can reach 30 feet, tear out trees and destroy buildings.
How fast can a tornado go?
Exceeding speeds of 300 mph, tornadoes are an unavoidable threat. The damages caused by tornadoes result primarily from the high winds and the large debris, like vehicles and broken glass, which the winds propel through the area. Tornadoes can even rip homes to shreds.
How fast can wind gusts go during a thunderstorm?
Strong winds during thunderstorms can reach 120 mph and knock down powerlines and trees. In fact, the damage from thunderstorms is more common than destruction caused by tornadoes. Surprisingly, the ruin caused by heavy winds during thunderstorms can equal the damage caused by tornadoes.
What are the three types of destruction associated with earthquakes?
In addition to the destruction created directly by seismic vibrations, list three other types of destruction associated with earthquakes. Landslides, fires, and tsunamis.
What are the factors that affect the amount of destruction that seismic vibrations cause to human-made structures?
List four factors that affect the amount of destruction that seismic vibrations cause to human-made structures. Intensity of shaking. Duration of the vibrations . Nature of the material on which the structures are built. The nature of the building materials and construction practices of the region.
What causes earthquakes?
An earthquake is ground shaking caused by sudden and rapid movement along Earth fractures called faults. Most large earthquakes occur when there are huge amounts of stored energy in the rocks that suddenly is released.
Why is a tsunami so destructive?
Tsunami can be very destructive if they make landfall. List at least three reasons an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 might result in more death and destruction than a quake with a magnitude of 8.0. If a region is on soft sediment, it may amplify the vibrations. Liquefaction may occur and generate destruction.
Is continental crust granitic or granitic?
Continental crust is a less dense, granitic type of rock while oceanic crust is a denser, darker, basaltic rock. Contrast the physical makeup of the asthenosphere and the lithosphere. The lithosphere is the entire crust and uppermost mantle; it is the stiff and relatively cool outer shell of Earth.
What is the primary hazard of an earthquake?
The primary earthquake hazard is surface rupture. It can be caused by vertical or horizontal movement on either side of a ruptured fault. Ground displacement, which can affect large land areas, can produce severe damage to structures, roads, railways and pipelines.
How does an earthquake affect the Earth?
Earthquake destruction begins with the earth’s violent shaking that can rupture the earth, trigger landslides and turn the surface of the earth to liquid. The damaging shaking of major earthquakes can be felt hundreds of miles away.
How long did the Ridgecrest earthquake last?
The second quake with a magnitude 7.1 lasted 12 seconds and was felt by about 30 million people from Sacramento to San Diego. More than 6,000 homes lost power. The Ridgecrest earthquakes followed a 25-year "quiet period" after the Northridge earthquake.
Why do earthquakes happen?
Earthquakes produce sudden, rapid shaking of the earth caused by the shifting of rock beneath the earth’s surface. Earthquakes strike without warning, at any time of year, day or night. Avoid earthquake damage and injury.
What is the most important secondary effect of the earthquakes?
Earthquake damage from fires is the most important secondary effect. The Ridgecrest earthquakes that hit on July 4 and July 5, 2019 with a magnitude 6.4 and 7.1, respectively, were the most recent major earthquakes in Southern California. The second quake with a magnitude 7.1 lasted 12 seconds and was felt by about 30 million people ...
What are the effects of surface rupture?
Surface Rupture. The vibrations from an earthquake can lead to ground displacement and surface rupture. The surface rupture can cause other hazards, as well as damage to roads and buildings. In this example, the surface rupture has caused large cracks and the collapse of a paved road.
What is ground shaking?
Ground Shaking & Structural Failure. Ground shaking is the vibration of the ground during an earthquake. The shaking triggers other hazards such as liquefaction and landslides. Most earthquake damage results from the seismic waves passing beneath buildings, roads, and other structures.
