The Worst Places To Live If You're Scared Of Earthquakes

Where are the worst places to live if you are afraid of earthquakes? This article will discuss where earthquakes occur in general, where they have taken place in past, and where they are most likely to occur in the United States.

There are several problems in dealing with this type of question. First, you must be aware that science cannot exactly predict when earthquakes will occur, let alone what their strength will be if and when they do take place. Second, as technology improves, scientists are finding more and more locations where a quake might occur. Sometimes, ignorance can be bliss. Third, an earthquake that occurs in an area where buildings are newer and were built toward some sort of earthquake standards is going to have a much less effect than if an earthquake with the same magnitude were to occur in an area with older buildings and fewer building codes. Simply speaking, earthquakes generally occur in three areas in the world.

If you are looking at a map, the circum-Pacific seismic belt runs along the west coasts of South America and North America through the ocean to Japan. It also includes New Zealand, New Guinea, the Philipines and the Pacific Islands. The circum-Pacific seismic belt is the most active of the three belts. The Alpide belt covers Java, Sumatra, and the Himalayas, and then runs through the Mediterranean and into the Atlantic Ocean. The third belt, the mid-Atlantic Ridge, is deep in the Atlantic Ocean. This is not to say that earthquakes to not occur elsewhere; they do. It is useful to look at what has happened in the past to see where there might be problems in the future.

Since 1900, Chile, Kamchatka, Tonga, Ningxia-Gansu in China, Assam in Tibet, and the Kuril Islands have all experienced earthquakes of 8.5 or more. In 1906, an earthquake of 8.8 off the coast of Ecuador caused a tsunami that resulted in 500 to 1000 deaths. There was an 8.7 magnitude earthquake along the border between Chile and Argentina in 1922. Northern Sumatra has suffered two devastating earthquakes over 8.5, one measuring 9.0 during 2004 followed by an 8.7 in 2005. Alaska had a 9.2 earthquake in 1964 at Prince William Sound, a 9.1 in 1957 at the Andreanof Islands, and an 8.7 in 1965 at Rat Islands.

The most dangerous places to have lived as far as earthquakes during the last year to date are Sumatra and Iran. Sumatra has been the hardest hit, with the horrendous 9.0 earthquake on 12/26/2004 where over 283,000 people lost their lives from the earthquake and the resultant tsunami and the 8.7 earthquake that occurred on 3/28/2005 where more than 1,300 people died. In Iran, more than 600 people perished as a result of the 6.4 earthquake on February 22, 2005. As a comparison, the Northridge, California earthquake occurred on January 17, 1994, registering 6.7 on the Richter scale. The earthquake hit a highly populated area. Sixty people died as a result of the quake.

Why did fewer people die in this earthquake than the recent earthquake in Iran, even though the Northridge earthquake was stronger? In part, the difference can be explained by buildings. A large number of buildings in the Northridge area were built to withstand earthquakes. In Iran, many people were living in very old homes without this kind of protection.

In the United States, you are more likely to experience an earthquake if you live in Alaska and California. These two states accounted for just over 80% of all earthquakes of a magnitude of 3.5 or more recorded from 1974 to 2003. The safest states to live in are Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Iowa, Maryland, North Dakota, Vermont, and Wisconsin, none of which had earthquakes during the same time period. Alaska, Arkansas, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, South Carolina, and Washington have all experienced earthquakes of 7.0 or more since 1868.

Some other facts for those who are afraid of earthquakes to consider:

Most earthquakes are never felt.
The United States Geological Service estimates that roughly 1,300,000 earthquakes that measure between 2.0-2.9 on the Richter scale occur every year.
Chile had the largest earthquake ever recorded, a 9.5, on May 20, 1960.
On the average, there will only be one earthquake a year that reaches 8.0 or more.
The moon gets “moonquakes,” but they are not as dramatic as earthquakes. They do not happen as often and are less severe than earthquakes.
One of the worst earthquake tragedies probably occurred on July 5, 1201 when over 1,000,000 people died in Upper Egypt and Syria as a result of the quake.
In the last week, Japan has experienced four earthquakes of magnitudes between 4.7 and 5.3.

Author: Laura Evans

About Author: Laura Evans is a freelance writer who has lived most of her life in California and has experienced many earthquakes.