Is Money Wasted Preparing for a Major Midwest Quake?
Thursday, November 10, 2011 - 07:00
in Earth & Climate
The lethal fault cuts through the middle of a Tennessee bean field and then ducks beneath the Mississippi River, making a beeline for New Madrid , Missouri. Named the Reelfoot fault, this geological crack combined with neighbouring faults two centuries ago to unleash a series of devastating earthquakes that have been called the biggest to strike the contiguous United States in recorded history. On government hazard maps, the New Madrid region stands out as a red bull's eye. This spot in the middle of the continent -- far from the plate boundaries that produce Earth's greatest quakes -- would seem to be every bit as dangerous as San Francisco or Los Angeles. [More]