THE 12 WORST EARTHQUAKES OF ALL TIME by Susan E Hamen 12 Story Library
1 Large Earthquake Shakes Alaska’s Rat Islands Alaska is the largest state by land area in the United States It is bigger than Texas California and Montana combined Alaska is also the most sparsely populated state Much of it is covered in ice and snow Harsh conditions keep many people away The Aleutian Islands lie off of Alaska’s west coast The region experienced a huge earthquake on February 4 1965 The temblor measured 8.7 on the Richter scale It is called the Rat Islands earthquake because it happened closest to that archipelago The earthquake was very large but it did little damage There were no buildings or people on the Rat Islands Slight cracks formed in wooden buildings on nearby islands Two bridges Shifting of the earth’s tectonic plates can cause large cracks in the ground
Tsunami hazard zones are now identified in Alaska itself Shemya Island experienced tsunami waves about 35 feet 10 7 m high Flooding occurred Damage was worst on Amchitka Island Property losses there totaled 10,000 or 78,000 in 2018 dollars 0 Deaths reported from this large earthquake The earthquake did little damage because of its remote location The temblor measured 8 7 on the Richter scale Tsunami waves caused more damage than the earthquake were destroyed Some asphalt runways were damaged The shifting of the earth’s tectonic plates caused a tsunami This did more damage than the earthquake WHY DO EARTHQUAKES HAPPEN Earthquakes occur when two large pieces of the earth’s crust slip and move These moving pieces are called tectonic plates The movement causes shock waves They make the earth’s surface shake This shaking is what we call an earthquake Smaller movements before and after an earthquake are called foreshocks and aftershocks
