Seismophobia gains ground.
KDKA (Pittsburgh) reports:
There were 11 earthquakes in eastern Ohio in 2011.
Most of them were not very powerful and caused little damage, but some people are asking about emergency plans if a major quake hits the area.
The new phenomenon of earthquakes in eastern Ohio is puzzling many people.
Some geologists say that discarded brine used while drilling for natural gas is being injected near fault lines. It acts as a lubricant, inducing the earthquakes.
Emergency management officials in and near Youngstown say they have a general plan that covers any and all emergencies.
“Specific to that, earthquakes are so broad in category that we don’t have a one-on-one say do this, do this, do this. It falls under that emergency operations plan,” said Clark Jones, of the Mahoning County EMA.
Jones says officials near Youngstown worked together to create a checklist for earthquake preparedness.
“It gives a general outline of what to do prior to earthquakes to be prepared for them if you’re in an area that’s prone to earthquakes, which we seem to be all of a sudden,” he said…
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There is no way to prepare yourself for a quake without knowing the day and time along with the strength. So far, this cannot be done. I have been through many in California. Lots of advice about what to do when it is happening, If you are in the wrong place at the wrong time, all that good advice is worthless.
If Ohio residents are really really worried about ‘The Big One’, My advice is leave the state. Problem solved.
Tom has a very good point. The worst earthqukes in US history occured along the New Madrid Fault over a hundred years ago and lasted for about ten years. An “inconvenient truth” our anti-fracking greens would like to ignore.
Hey Tommy boy,
I love how you Left Coasters always say you’re so “amused” by our anxiety over “little” quakes like a 4.3. First of all, you sound like the neighborhood bully boy punk, and second of all, dimwit, once a month for little ones and now in the 11th month we have a 4.3 and so excuse us if we’re a little concerned.
We’re so sorry if it matters to us that our walls and ceilings are cracking and the ground is exploding underneath us.
When we have a 5.0 or so will it make you stop laughing at us?
Dork.
Anybody who has lived in California can only be amused at the anxiety generated in these Easterners over a measly 4.0 or two. On the Mercalli scale, they would register a II, or at worst a III, resulting in no damage. Nothing a Californian wouldn’t sleep through…
The REAL worry should be over the New Madrid fault zone 650 mi SW, or the Yellowstone Caldera 1600 miles upwind of Youngstown.
If the faults are being “lubricated” and allowing them to release the stored energy, wouldn’t this be better than waiting for the non-lubricated big one?