on_wx Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 This article has been coming with huge surprise by everyone...even though a lot of people have lived through the 4.0-6.0's this area has produced in recent memory. http://www.cbc.ca/ne...quake-risk.html Seismologists and structural engineers say the city of Ottawa is at risk for a big earthquake. The Val-des-Bois quake that shook the capital last year reminded people that Ottawa sits in an earthquake zone. And there is a chance it could one day produce a destructive quake far worse than February's deadly magnitude-6.3 tremor in Christchurch, New Zealand. The Ottawa Citizen newspaper has put together this page to inform of Ottawa's earthquake risks. Ottawa sits in a rift valley between the Mattawa Fault to the north and the Petawawa Fault to the south. As does much of eastern Ontario and extreme southern Quebec. http://ottawacitizennews.com/quakes/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Organizing Low Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 since when does ottawa sit in a dangerous earthquake zone??? the best part are the one line comments Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
on_wx Posted December 30, 2011 Author Share Posted December 30, 2011 since when does ottawa sit in a dangerous earthquake zone??? the best part are the one line comments The comments posted on CBC articles are quality entertainment. I personally think the Ottawa-Quebec City corridor is Canada's own version of Memphis, TN and the whole New Madrid situation. It's about time Canadian interests take note in what has and will happen again in this area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
on_wx Posted December 30, 2011 Author Share Posted December 30, 2011 And what is still fresh in my memory is watching the Christchurch coverage on CBC and BBC after the quake. Tall buildings collapsed or leaning, people being pulled out of rubble, landslides all over, and 181 dead. I'm not familiar with what the ground is like in the Ottawa region, but if the experts think it'll be worse than Christchurch, then quite frankly that's horrific. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
on_wx Posted December 30, 2011 Author Share Posted December 30, 2011 There have been magnitude 7.0 quakes near Quebec City http://earthquakesca...p-carte-eng.php Doesn't appear to show late 1900-2000 large quakes including the 2010 5.0 in Ottawa... better shown on here through 2001 http://earthquakesca...eastcan-eng.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amped Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 since when does ottawa sit in a dangerous earthquake zone??? the best part are the one line comments Since the ice sheet melted 10,000 years ago. 7.0 maybe pushing it though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
on_wx Posted December 30, 2011 Author Share Posted December 30, 2011 Since the ice sheet melted 10,000 years ago. 7.0 maybe pushing it though. http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/states/events/1663_02_05.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamieOber Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 People get drilled in their head that the West Coast is the only place at risk for earthquakes but history shows that isn't the case. They aren't as common east of the Mississippi but they do happen. For example, Charleston SC: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1886_Charleston_earthquake Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qaanaaq Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 since when does ottawa sit in a dangerous earthquake zone??? the best part are the one line comments Since never ! It sits on the Canadian Shield- one of the most stable pieces of the earth one can be living. Yes, they have had earthquakes- they apparently experienced a 7.0 in in the 17th century- but so have plenty of other locations in "stable settings". Their situation is no different than Mineral, Virginia, Washington, DC, or Charleston, South Carolina. Buildings can fall there too.-as we saw this past summer. This "journalism" leaves much to be desired. It is written to scare and frighten people so they buy product. There are no links, just some quote from a seismologist saying that they can "imagine" lots of destruction. Better journalism has been provided by some of the posters here- (thanks) There is no geological relationship between Ottawa Canada and Christ Church, NZ, for crying out loud ! Christ Church sits on the "Ring of Fire"- the same tectonics that brought us "Krakatoa". Anyway, what does this have to do with "meteorology". ?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
on_wx Posted December 30, 2011 Author Share Posted December 30, 2011 Since never ! It sits on the Canadian Shield- one of the most stable pieces of the earth one can be living. Yes, they have had earthquakes- they apparently experienced a 7.0 in in the 17th century- but so have plenty of other locations in "stable settings". Read the whole thread... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derecho! Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 Since never ! It sits on the Canadian Shield- one of the most stable pieces of the earth one can be living. Yes, they have had earthquakes- they apparently experienced a 7.0 in in the 17th century- but so have plenty of other locations in "stable settings". Their situation is no different than Mineral, Virginia, Washington, DC, or Charleston, South Carolina. Buildings can fall there too.-as we saw this past summer. The St. Lawrence and Ottawa Valley seismic hazard is quite high, and much worse than on the East Coast of the US. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qaanaaq Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 I'm not surprised by this information derecho; so thanks. One of my points is that there is no scientific basis to compare earthquakes in Christ Church New Zealand to those in eastern Canada- I also agree with Foster that damage could be enormous- if and when one occurs. And the thread is good- I read it- but the journalism is poor. People should put earthquakes in this region of North America into context. There is low incidence of earthquakes here- perhaps higher than eastern north america but still low. From the Natural Resources of Canada: Background on earthquakes in eastern Canada The continual shifting of large segments of the earth's crust, called tectonic plates, causes more than 97% of the world's earthquakes. Eastern Canada is located in a stable continental region within the North American Plate and, as a consequence, has a relatively low rate of earthquake activity. http://earthquakescanada.nrcan.gc.ca/zones/eastcan-eng.php The St. Lawrence and Ottawa Valley seismic hazard is quite high, and much worse than on the East Coast of the US. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
on_wx Posted December 30, 2011 Author Share Posted December 30, 2011 Using this info: http://atlas.nrcan.g...ajorearthquakes I was able to put this list together... anything 6.0+ has an asterisk on the line. DATE.........LOCATION................................MAGNITUDE 1663-02-05-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 7.0-----* 1732-09-16-- Montreal, Quebec----------------------- 5.8------ 1791-12-07-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 6.0-----* 1831-07-07-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 5.0------ 1842-11-07-- Trois-Rivieres, Quebec----------------- 5.0------ 1855-02-08-- Moncton, New Brunswick----------------- 5.2------ 1860-10-17-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 6.0-----* 1861-06-12-- Ottawa Region, Ontario----------------- 5.0------ 1869-10-22-- Central New Brunswick------------------ 5.7------ 1870-10-20-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 6.5-----* 1872-01-10-- Quebec City, Quebec-------------------- 5.0------ 1880-11-29-- Quebec North Shore--------------------- 5.5------ 1893-11-27-- Montreal, Quebec----------------------- 5.7------ 1897-03-23-- Montreal, Quebec----------------------- 5.0------ 1904-03-21-- Passamaquoddy Bay, New Brunswick------- 5.9------ 1914-02-10-- Cornwall, Ontario---------------------- 5.5------ 1924-09-30-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 5.5------ 1925-03-01-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 6.2-----* 1929-09-17-- Attica, New York----------------------- 5.2------ 1929-11-18-- Offshore Newfoundland/Nova Scotia------ 7.2-----* 1929-11-18-- Offshore Newfoundland/Nova Scotia------ 6.0-----* 1931-01-08-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 5.4------ 1935-11-01-- Temiscaming, Quebec-------------------- 6.1-----* 1939-10-19-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 5.6------ 1944-09-05-- Cornwall, Ontario-Massena, New York---- 5.6------ 1952-10-14-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 5.3------ 1973-06-15-- Quebec-Maine Border-------------------- 4.9------ 1979-08-19-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 5.0------ 1982-01-09-- Miramichi Highlands, New Brunswick----- 5.8------ 1982-01-11-- Miramichi Highlands, New Brunswick----- 5.5------ 1983-10-07-- Blue Mountain Lake, New York----------- 5.2------ 1988-11-25-- Saquenay Region, Quebec---------------- 5.9------ 1989-12-25-- Ungava Peninsula, Quebec--------------- 6.3-----* 1990-10-19-- Mont-Laurier, Quebec------------------- 5.0------ 1997-11-06-- Quebec City, Quebec-------------------- 5.1------ 1999-03-16-- Lower St. Lawrence, Quebec------------- 5.1------ 2000-01-01-- Kipawa, Quebec------------------------- 5.2------ 2002-04-20-- Plattsville, New York------------------ 5.5------ 2005-03-06-- Charlevoix-Kamouraska Region, Quebec--- 5.4------ 2010-06-23-- 55km North of Ottawa, Ontario---------- 5.0------ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
on_wx Posted December 31, 2011 Author Share Posted December 31, 2011 Earthquake-proofing needed for Ottawa schools Ottawa's older schools are not prepared for an earthquake, according to two Ottawa engineers who say structural upgrading is needed to prevent the possibility of significant damage.Murat Saatcioglu, the University of Ottawa research chair in earthquake engineering, said many of Ottawa's public buildings are full of "substandard reinforced concrete frames" designed to a 1963 building code. It is highly likely, he added, there would be significant damage for schools that sit on Leda clay, which increases shaking during a strong earthquake. http://www.cbc.ca/ne...de-seismic.html The plot thickens... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
on_wx Posted December 31, 2011 Author Share Posted December 31, 2011 Hmm... that article quotes this new article. All kinds of news on this now. Earthquake would shake east Ottawa hardest Engineers can't always prepare for ground liquefying due to Leda clay http://www.cbc.ca/ne...ay-orleans.html Project underway to find Ottawa areas with most risk Ottawa's micro-zonation project is trying to identify what parts of the city rest on Leda clay, which has become more urgent since the earthquake in Val-des-bois, Que., in June 2010. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sub_Zero Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Hmm... that article quotes this new article. All kinds of news on this now. Earthquake would shake east Ottawa hardest Engineers can't always prepare for ground liquefying due to Leda clay http://www.cbc.ca/ne...ay-orleans.html I live in the east end. During last year's 5.0 earthquake, my house shook violently. Things fell off shelves, the house rocked back and forth for a good 30 seconds, while the ground vibrated for about a full minute. I was in the basement when it first hit.... It felt like there was something trying to break through the concrete floor...scared the crap out of me. Immediatly after the shaking started, I ran upstairs. I stood in the living room in awe....My house was moving north/south and the sound.....scarier than the actual shaking. This past summer summer I was at the park with my kids, when I heard that eerie rumble...within seconds I could feel my feet vibrating, yet another earthquake. Im my 36 yrs in Ottawa, I have felt my share of quakes, but it seems the rate has increased. In the last 2 years I have felt 4 earthquakes, one being the 5.0. I can't even begin to imagine what a 7 would feel like, and what kind of damage it would do around here. Scary indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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