Earthquakes and Volcanoes - I Feel the Earth Move Under My Feet

[DCon]

Strong quake in Wellington

A strong earthquake struck off the west coast of New Zealand's North Island on Tuesday, shaking residents across a wide area and toppling goods from shelves but there were no immediate reports of major damage or injury.

The 7.0 magnitude quake was centered 170 km northwest of the capital Wellington at a depth of 230 km (147 miles), the national GeoNet website reported. The U.S. Geological Service earlier reported the tremor at a 6.2 magnitude. There was no tsunami warning issued.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8620GT20120703

[Ephilant]

A 5.5 quake has just hit 120 km SE of Rhodes island, a a depth of 10 km. Reports are still scanty, but so far no in juries or worthwile damage reported... Let's hope it stays that way.

[Ephilant]

The areas around Patras and prefecture of Achaia are on fire. A wildfire erupted in the early hours of this morning, and after the intens heat of the last 10 days the fire has no problem in spreading through the bone dry area. Gale to storm force winds are fanning the flames, and fire fighters and the army are having serious problems trying to contain the fires.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5Z-4d0MAn8&feature=player_embedded"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5Z-4d0MAn8&feature=player_embedded[/ame]

The university of Patras had to be evacuated, while staff in Patras General Hospital are preparing for an all out evacuation. The residents of 3 villages outside Patras have been ordered to leave immediately. The authorities do not rule out arson.

[Ephilant]

Iran was hit by 2 major earthquakes early in the morning. Both quakes hit in the Tabriz area, measuring 6.3 and 6.4 respectively.
Initial reports mention over 250 dead and thousands injured. There are also reports of hundreds of villages cut off from the rest of Iran and it is expected that many. many more victims will be found there.

[C. Flower]

Iran was hit by 2 major earthquakes early in the morning. Both quakes hit in the Tabriz area, measuring 6.3 and 6.4 respectively.
Initial reports mention over 250 dead and thousands injured. There are also reports of hundreds of villages cut off from the rest of Iran and it is expected that many. many more victims will be found there.

Very sad. Not the first time for them to suffer from this.

Earthquakes are a testing time for governments.

[morticia]

Particularly testing if it happened anywhere the buried nuke facilities the Iranians definitely don't have 😉. For the sake of ordinary people, I hope they took care with those non-existent potential fukushimas.

[fluffybiscuits]

Very sad. Not the first time for them to suffer from this.

Earthquakes are a testing time for governments.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/0812/iran-earthquakes.html

Has risen to 300 people now.A lot of people are now living in makeshift houses or tents now and they need relief to come through fast.

[DCon]

There is some volcanic rock the size of Belgium floating around the Pacific

A huge cluster ‘raft’ of floating volcanic rocks covering an area almost the size of Belgium has been spotted drifting in the Pacific Ocean.

The gigantic cluster, made up of lightweight pumice expelled from an underwater volcano and spread over 26,000 sq kilometres, has been spotted drifting in the ocean by a military aircraft, about 1,000 kilometres off the coast of New Zealand.

A naval ship had to change direction to avoid the rocks, which were spread out over thousands of square miles.

Experts reckon the rocks were formed by lava released from an underwater volcano, the ‘Daily Mail’ reported.

http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/sci...?homepage=true

[Ephilant]

Reports are coming in of a huge earthquake near the Philipines. A 7.9 quake hit about 100 km East of Sulangan, and Tsunami warnings for both the Philipines and Indonesia are in force.

[Ephilant]

Rather rude awakening this morning...The clock said 6.20, the ground shook.
5.4 on the scale, out in the sea it struck, just off Gavdos island. but we felt it alright. No injuries or damage reported so far...

[C. Flower]

Rather rude awakening this morning...The clock said 6.20, the ground shook.
5.4 on the scale, out in the sea it struck, just off Gavdos island. but we felt it alright. No injuries or damage reported so far...

A pretty scary way to wake.

[Ephilant]

You get used to it, kind of, but an hour or 2 later would have been nice. What really pisses me off is that it has killed my monitor, again. Second time this year. And no insurance company will cover these things.
Just installed a new one. Hopefully we will not get an aftershock...

[Ephilant]

Greece got hit by no less than 6 earthquakes in the last 24 hours, ranging between 4 and 5.1 on the richter scale.
Yesterday morning we got it in the neck, or rather earth, at the more civil hour of 11.45 am, with a 4.9. A few hours earlier Aigio got rattled a bit a 6.40am with a 4 R.

Today, Cassos and Corinth were rudely awoken within 1 minute of each other with a 4R and a 4.9R respectively, while Kiriakion in the NE of the country got the 5.1R at 3.52am this morning. A few hours later, at 09.15am Conitsa in the NE of the country was treated to a 4.5R.

That is a lot of seismic activity in 1 area for such a short period (22 hours or so).

[Ephilant]

Another rude awakening this morning. 4.6, just east of Sitia, but we felt it. There should be a law banning shakers before 10.00 am. At least let us have our frappe in peace, and wake up nicely.

[Ephilant]

Madness knows no bounds!

6 seismologists and 1 government official have been charged with manslaughter for underestimating risks prior to the 2009 earthquake, which killed 309 people in the medieval town of L'Aquila. They will learn their fates when verdicts are handed down by a court later today.

According to the charges

The experts provided "an incomplete, inept, unsuitable and criminally mistaken" analysis, downplaying risks and reassuring residents, leaving them unprepared for the quake

The seven defendants are Enzo Boschi, who at the time was the head of Italy's national geophysics institute; Giulio Selvaggio, head of the INVV's national earthquake centre in Rome; and Franco Barberi of Rome's University
Three, Mauro Dolce, head of the Civil Protection's seismic risk office, Gian Michele Calvi, head of the European Centre for Training and Research in Earthquake Engineering (EUcentre); and Claudio Eva of the University of Genoa.

As well as being charged with manslaughter, the seven also face charges of reckless endangerment.

When it was pointed out during the trial that this trial should maybe be about non-compliance with existing building regulations (many houses collapsed during the 6.3 quake), the resulting silence and inaction was rather deafening...