AT U R EÊSF U N R Y NATUREÊS FURY EARTHQUAKE Anne Rooney
AT U R EÊSF U N R Y What Is an What Is an Earthquake Earthquake In an earthquake the ground moves or shakes sometimes very violently It can bring buildings crashing to the ground and twist or break up roads railway lines and bridges For people who experience an earthquake it can be a terrifying dangerous event A major quake that hits a densely populated area can kill hundreds of thousands of people Rippling ground Shock waves from an earthquake can travel a long way spreading through the ground just like ripples spread through water This means that even people living a long way from where the earthquake starts can be affected Each year the earth experiences more than 50,000 earthquakes although A massive earthquake rocked Tokyo in 1650 most of these are so small they are completely unnoticed by most people and are only detected by scientists using sensitive measuring instruments Earthquakes in history Earthquakes have happened ever since the earth formed a solid surface 3 8 billion years ago We have historical records of earthquakes throughout human history and geological evidence from earlier times People long ago did not know what caused earthquakes and often made up legends about them or believed their gods were responsible for the terrifying events 4
AT U R EÊSF U N R Y Danger area Earthquakes are most dangerous for people when they strike built-up areas Falling buildings and roads breaking up cause many injuries and deaths Although there is less danger from an earthquake itself if it happens in open countryside it can trigger other hazards such as landslides floods avalanches and giant waves called tsunamis These can strike an area already devastated by an earthquake making rescue operations difficult and killing survivors of the original quake THE LEGEND OF NAMAZU Japan is an area often troubled by earthquakes and people living there have kept records of them for many centuries Long ago Japanese people accounted for earthquakes with the story of Namazu a giant catfish According to the legend Namazu lives in the mud under the islands of Japan Most of the time the fish is kept still by the god Kashima pressing down on him with the weight of a huge stone But when Kashima fails to hold him down Namazu thrashes around and Japan is shaken wildly Around 10,000 people may have died when Mexico City was struck by an earthquake in 1985 W h a t I s a n E a r t h q u a k e 5
