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EARTHQUAKESIN NEW ENGLAND AREWEPREPARED? Fea turingtheWorkof theSeventhGradersof ChristaMcAul iffeCharter School Spring2015 Vol ume2

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Page 1: EARTHQUAKES IN NEW ENGLAND - McAuliffe Charter · 5.0 2010 During this earthquake there were many buildings that were damaged. There were not many immediate reports of damage or injuries

EARTHQUAKES IN NEW ENGLAND

ARE WE PREPARED?

Featuring the Work of the Seventh Graders of Christa McAul iffe Charter School

Spring 2015

Volume 2

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CONTENTSTABLE OF

CALLS TO ACTIONThe task was to create an opinion speech about how we should priorit ize aid during or af ter an earthquake.

Speeches by Cam eron Bassett 30

Om ar M assoud 31-32

Jonathan Spal t i 33-34

PAGE #

EVIDENCE FROM THE FIELDThe Ear thquak e essays w er e to tel l abou t how the studen ts

foun d ev i den ce on thei r 7th gr ade w ester n M A cam pi n g

t r i p for thei r quest i on of how does the ear th shak e i n New

En gl an d?

Essays and Repor ts by

W i l l Edm an 21-22

Connor Andrews 23

Sam antha Stewar t 24-25

M ichael M or in 26

Connor Fontano 27

PAGE #

CASE STUDIES OF MAJOR NEW ENGLAND EARTHQUAKES

by Abi H eyd 14

Grady Kaufm en 15

Tara Cl in ton 16

M adison Sherm an 17

Calr y Brady 18

El i Prybla 19-20

PAGE #

RECENT & FAMOUS NEW ENGLAND EARTHQUAKES

The ear thquak es r ecen t an d fam ous i n New En gl an d i s a

p i ece of w or k that the studen ts d i d to m ap the d i f fer en t

ear thquak es an d gi v i n g i n for m at i on abou t them bu t al so

p l ot t i n g them on a t i m el i n e.

M apping and t im el ine by

M aanya Laad 4-5

Rebecca H andelm an 6 -8

Lara Chr ist ina Dias 8-9

Nicole Davi la-Santacruz 10-11

El izabeth Schnur 12 -13

PAGE #

FOREWORDby El izabeth Schnur and

Rebecca H andelm an PAGE 3

The Case Studies are about a creat ive writ ing piece that connects to an earthquake of the students choice.

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ForewordThe tit le of our expedition was, "Earthquakes: Are we prepared?"

Our guiding questions were:

1. Does the earth shake in New England?

2. How can we read the landscape for clues of our geologic past and future?

3. How do geologic forces impact human lives?

We started with our expedition kick off . At the kick off we had a earthquake simulation and then did a gallery walk of pictures and texts to introduce us to the guiding questions. Afterward, we met up with our crews and had an expert talk to us about what they do when an emergency happens. We did a lot of work in both science and ELA class.

We went on a lot of f ieldwork for this expedition. The biggest one was our camping trip. On this trip, we went to Western MA and went to many dif ferent sites to learn about earthquakes. It helped a lot when we could see actual evidence of earthquakes. Some of the experts that we met with told us a lot of really good information about what we were learning. This trip really helped give us

information that we needed for science class.

For ELA we visited the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA). We learned how we would priorit ize aid in an emergency here in Massachusetts. This was part of what we were learning about in ELA. This really helped us when we wrote our opinion speeches about priorit izing aid in MA.

We also had several experts come in and talk to us. In ELA we had an expert named Betsy Bowman who lived and taught in Haiti for one year, and that happened to be the year of the earthquake. It gave us a lot more information about Haiti that wasn?t ?Haiti is poor.? She talked about how she taught at the Louverture Cleary School. She also told us about what happened before, after, and during the earthquake. Another expert named John Ebel, a professor at BU came into science class and talked to us about the things involving earthquakes.

Major projects we did in class were:

ELA: Children?s book about Haiti, Opinion Speech about priorit izing aid after an earthquake, and a newspaper article.

SCIENCE: Map, timeline, earthquake essay, and earthquake f ictional stories/newspaper articles/ comics.

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earthquake mappingBy Mannya Laad

Locat ion Magnitude Date Summary

Central New

6.5 1638 The damage levels are very uncertain. Shaking was felt in St. Lawrence river which is in Canada.

Newbury 5.6 1727 Stone walls were shaken down. There were changes in the water f low in some of the springs. The earthquake was felt in Maine to the Delaware river. There was a very strong aftershock on December 28 1727.

Cape Ann 6.2 1755 Around 100 chimneys fell near Boston and 1,500 were damaged. Tons of buildings fell. Many springs were formed or stopped. Ground cracks opened as well.There were aftershocks reported.

New York City

5.2 1884 This earthquake caused damage in Connecticut, New Jersey and southern New York. There were slight aftershocks and the second shock was the strongest one.

Easternmost Maine

5.9 1904 There was damage near two towns in Maine and New Brunswick. The earthquake was felt in New England, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward island and southeastern Quebec. There were more than 14 aftershocks.

New Hampshire

5.5 1940 The 1940 earthquake was actually two earthquakes. The second earthquake caused much more damage than the f irst one. There was minor damage in Maine, M.A, New York and Vermont

West Maine

5.8 1944 The earthquake was felt in south of Canada to Maryland, Maine and Indiana. This earthquake caused damage estimated to 2 mill ion dollars. Many of the water wells went dry and lot of the buildings were unsafe.

Blue mountain Lake

5.3 1983 There were some minor cracks in plaster walls, there were many landslides reported. Overall there was very minor damage during this earthquake.

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Quebec 5.9 1988 This earthquake was the largest earthquake in North America in 53 years. It was located in a relatively aseismic area. There was minor aftershock activity.

Clinton and Essex counties

5.1 2002 There was some damage like bridges and roads. Many buildings had cracked, some broken windows and small items were knocked off their shelves. It was felt on New Brunswick, Maine,Ohio and Michigan.

Ontario Quebec

5.0 2010 During this earthquake there were many buildings that were damaged. There were not many immediate reports of damage or injuries for this specif ic earthquake. It was felt near Ottawa and Toronto.

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earthquake mappingBy Rebecca Handelman

Locat ion Magnitude Date Summary

Au Sable Forks, New York

5.1 4/20/2002 2002: Walls, foundations, and windows have cracked, water l ines, roads, chimney?s, and bridges were damaged.

Massena & Cornwall, New York

5.8 9/4/1944 1944: Severe earthquake felt from far away and the damages cost a lot of money, and house foundations and more things got severely damaged.

Blue Mountain Lake, New York

5.3 10/7/1983 1983: Several landslides have occurred, chimneys have collapsed, tombstones have slid, plaster walls cracked, and etc.

New York City 5.2 8/10/1884 1884: Chimney?s, bricks, fell and plaster cracked. The earthquake was felt from farther away places. Strong and light aftershocks occurred.

Cape Ann, MA 6.2 11/18/1755 1755: Felt from far away, ground cracked at some places, aftershocks, chimneys were thrown down, walls of buildings fell.

Newbury, Massachusetts

5.6 11/10/1727 1727: Stone walls and chimneys were shaken down, houses shook and rocked like they would fall down. It made it dif f icult to walk.

Central

New Hampshire

6.5 6/11/1638 1638: Very strong earthquake that was felt from far away, aftershocks occurred for 20 days after.

West Whitt ier, New Hampshire

5.5 12/20/1940

12/24/1940

1940: First earthquake weakened structures which made the second earthquakes worse. Walls cracked and chimneys broke and pipelines were damaged.

Easternmost, Maine

5.9 3/21/1904 1904 (1869): Chimney?s fell, felt from other far distances, over 14 aftershocks in about 3 days.

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Chicoutimi, Quebec, Canada

5.9 11/25/1988 1988: Large earthquake, large amount of high frequency energy, minor aftershocks happened.

Ontario 5.0 6/23/2010 2010: It was the strongest shaking ever felt in Ottawa.

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earthquake mappingBy Lara Christina Dias

Locat ion Magnitude Date Summary

Easternmost Maine

5.9 3-24-1904 1904: Chimneys fell near two towns in Maine and one in New Brunswick. Shaking felt in New England and South Quebec. 14

Massena New York

5.8 9-4-1944 1944: This earthquake was felt from Southern Canada, Maryland, Maine, to West Indiana. There was $2 mil. in damage. Chimneys were destroyed and places were unsafe to go into.

Au Sable Forks, New York

5.1 4-20-2002 2002: Roads, bridges, chimneys, and water l ines damaged. Walls cracked, windows broke, and items knocked off shelves.

Blue Mountain Lake, New York

5.3 10-7-1983 1983: Chimneys collapsed. tombstones were moved, and plaster walls cracked. Landslides were reported.

Tamworth, New Hampshire

5.5 12-20-1940 1940: Structures were weakened from f irst shock, so second shock caused more damage.

Central New Hampshire

6.5 6-11-1638 1638: Location and damage are uncertain because there were only a few reports. The shaking was felt in Canada and Boston. There were aftershocks felt for 20 days.

Newbury, Massachusetts

5.6 11-10-1727 1727: Stone walls and chimney bricks were shaken down and almost all tops of chimneys were knocked off . Houses shook and springs were changed. There were aftershocks for months after.

Cape Ann, Massachusetts

6.2 11-18-1755 1755: Cape Ann earthquake. 100 chimneys thrown down, 1,500 damaged. Brick buildings fell. Stone fences fell, as well. Some springs were formed, and some were destroyed. The ground had cracked. Aftershocks were reported.

Canada 5.0 6-23-2010 None---

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Quebec, Canada

5.9 11-25-1988 Largest earthquake in NA in 53 years. Single foreshock, relatively minor aftershock activity, and large amounts of high frequency energy.

NYC 5.2 8-10-1884 Plaster walls were cracked. It was felt from southern Maine to central Virginia. 3 shocks, and the second one was the strongest.

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earthquake mapping

.

By: Nicole Davila

Locat ion Magnitude Date Summary

Central New

Hampshire

Magnitude

6.5     

June 11 2:00pm Year 1638

The Shaking would feel strongly and there would be aftershocks Aftershocks were felt for at least 20 days. The shaking was felt from the St. Lawrence river in Canada to Boston.

Newbury Magnitude

5.6

November 10. 10:40pm Year 1727

In Newbury many stone walls and Chimneys were broken down. Houses and would shake as if they would have fallen down and the aftershocks would happen for several months.

Cape Ann Massachusetts

Magnitude 6.2

November 18 4:12am Year 1755

It was about 100 chimneys were down and 1,500 buildings were destroyed. In Eastern Massachusetts the ground would crack open

New York City Magnitude

5.2

August 10 2:07pm 1884.

Lots of Chimneys have fallen down the walls and plaster would crack in Connecticut. Then 3 very strong aftershocks occurred it mentioned that the second aftershock was the strongest.

Easternmost

Maine

Magnitude 5.9

March 21 1904. 1:04am

The shaking was felt from New England, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick. First there was one aftershocks then 14 more aftershocks were reported these aftershocks were very strong.

The Town Of Tamworth New Hampshire

Magnitude 5.5

December 20 2:27am. December 24 8:43am. Year 1940.

There was 3 aftershocks. The f irst one weakened many structure and did many damages. Some people say that the chimneys were broken down. After all that damage of chimneys breaking down several more aftershocks were occurred over the next months.

Massena Magnitude 5.8

September 4. 11:38pm 1944.

The earthquake caused many severe damage that caused over 2 mill ion dollars at Massena and Cornwall. 90% of the chimneys were destroyed or damaged and many chimneys were taken down in dif ferent countries.

Blue Mountain Lake

Magnitude 5.3

October 7 5:18am 1983.

One old chimney collapsed and minor cracks was formed in plaster walls. There were many landslides reported and there was light

Au Sable Forks Magnitude 5.1

April 20 10:50am 2002. Bridges,Chimneys, and water l ines were and many buildings were cracked or broken down and there was Maximum Intensity at Au Sable Forks.

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earthquake mappingBy Elizabeth Schnur

Locat ion Magnitude Date Summary

Newbury,

MA

5.6 Nov. 10,

1727

Newbury- Lots of chimneys were damaged. Water in natural springs moved and changed.

Cape Ann,

MA

6.2 Nov. 18,

1775

Cape Ann- Chimneys were broken. Brick buildings fell. Shaking was felt all the way from Nova Scotia to Maryland.

New York,

New York

5.2 Aug. 10,

1884

New York City- Bricks and walls fell. Quaking was felt from Maine to to Virginia. There were some very strong aftershocks.

Central

New Hampshire

6.5 June 11,

1638

New Hampshire- Lots of very strong aftershocks were felt. Due to this being so long ago, we don?t have a lot of information about this.

Whitt ier,

NE

5.5 Dec. 20/24,

1940

Whittier- These 2 earthquakes were near each other. A lot of old houses were broken. A cemetery was minorly

New Brunswick,

ME

5.9 Mar. 21,

1904

New Brunswick- This was felt all over Maine and NE. More than 14 aftershocks were reported.

Blue Mtn Lake,

New York

5.3 Oct. 7,

1983

Blue Mountain Lake- It caused very minor damage, but the quake was felt over a widespread area.

Au Sable Forks,

New York

5.1 Apr. 20,

2002

Au Sable Fort- Roads, bridges, and chimneys were damaged. Windows broke and things fell off of shelves.

Fort Covington,

New York

5.8 Sep. 4,

1944

Fort Covington- It was felt all over, causing damage estimated at $2 mill ion. Plumbing and masonry were damaged.

Ontario,

Quebec

5.0 June 23,

2010

Ontario- Damaged was felt throughout Quebec. There was a minor bridge collapse, injuring one man and causing some roads to be closed.

Chicoutimi,

Quebec

5.9 Nov. 25,

1988

Chicoutimi- This was the largest recorded quake in North America in 53 years. There were a few minor aftershocks.

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Cape Ann Catastrophe By Abi Heyd

It was November 18th, 1755. I was walking in Centennial Grove Park, Cape Ann, when a tremor shook the ground. My legs felt wobbly, and my brain couldn?t seem to process anything. I wondered what was happening, until I noticed some stone walls fall ing over, and crumbling to the ground. As my mind f inally decided to function again, I screamed as a shed tilted towards me. I was in the middle of an earthquake. The shaking stopped, and I fell to my knees in shock. I looked around me, at other runners, walkers, bikers, and people who had been sitt ing in the grass. Only, they weren?t doing that now. Most were huddled together with friends, under trees and holding onto the trunks. One girl was crying, staring at the bathrooms. Her father had gone into the building, only to have it collapse on top of him. I noticed, that on the buildings that had not collapsed, the chimneys were twisted at odd angles, and most, almost a hundred it seemed, had leveled down to the tops of the roofs. After the earthquake, I rushed home to see if my parents were okay, I found Victoria Sanchez and Abigail Murphy there helping out. They told me that they had found my parents (Mr. Faye and Mrs. Faye) trapped by the debris that had fallen, blocking the door to the living quarters. The charity volunteers came the next day. They chatted with people as they handed out necessities. ?About 1,300 to 1,600 chimneys were damaged, and how god had punished us,

with a magnitude 6 earthquake? They said. ?Many homes were crumbled, and the stone walls were destroyed. There were many aftershocks, and many injuries that had already been treated.? I knew we would get the help we needed. My parents had some scratches, and I had a cut on my knee, but other than that we were f ine. The volunteers gave us a basket of food, and a pitcher of water, and my parents cleaned up the cut on my knee. Later, we went to a relief camp, and we got supplies to build a home. My dad started to build it, with wood planks stuck in the ground, and a waterproof cloth over it to keep us dry. He put boards on the f loor, and blankets in two of the four corners, and the food in the covered basket in another corner. We settled down for the night, and I fell asleep. SOURCES:

Magnitude 5.5

Dec. 20, 1940, 2:27 a.m. local t ime

Dec. 24 8:43 a.m. local t ime. (n.d.).

Retrieved June 11, 2015,

from http:/ / aki.bc.edu/quakes_historical.htm

Magnitude 5.5

Dec. 20, 1940, 2:27 a.m. local t ime

Dec. 24 8:43 a.m. local t ime. (n.d.).

Retrieved June 11, 2015,

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earthquake case study

By: Grady Kaufman

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WRITTEN BY: TARA CLINTON

      

Cape Ann Has The Biggest Earthquake In Massachusetts History!

Sources:

- Weston Observatory- Wikipedia- Stories From Ipswich. (n.d.). Retrieved June 11, 2015,

from http:/ /www.ipswich.wordpress.com - Union Park Press. (2012, May 2). Retrieved June 11, 2015,

from http:/ /www.unionparkpress.com

November 18, 1755, an earthquake hit Cape Ann, Massachusetts. The earthquake was a magnitude of 6.2. It lasted for more than a minute. In Boston, the damage was concentrated in areas of inf il l near the harbor. 1,300 to 1,600 chimneys were damaged in some way. Church steeples in Boston were damaged, ending up tilted. Some areas affected by the earthquake are Cape Ann, Boston, Pembroke, Scituate, parts of New York, Chesapeake Bay, Annapolis River, Nova Scotia, and Portland, Maine. There were no aftershocks, so far, since the 18th. We spoke to some people from Cape Ann that had said, they thought that God was punishing them because of sinners. Fences were said to have fallen over in a line from Boston to Montreal. The epicenter was about 25 miles northeast of Cape Ann in an area of the ocean near Jeffreys Ledge. 15 brick buildings shattered and a great, big piles of debris are towering over the streets. Fortunately, no people died in the horrible earthquake. This is one earthquake that people will never forget.  

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Devastating Earthquake Shakes New England

Earthquake wreaks Havoc

  A powerful earthquake shook Cape Ann and the surrounding area causing fear and panic amongst the residents. On November 18th,1755 at approximately 4:30am the quake startled thousands, as they were shaken awake by a powerful tremor. Although nobody died as a result of the earthquake many people were injured.     

Damage

This powerful 6.2 quake was felt in Portland, Maine all the way down to South Boston. People in Springf ield, New Haven, Nova Scotia and South Carolina were victims as well. This power earthquake lasted more than a minute and caused 1500 chimneys to shatter or get thrown to the ground. Some roofs were damaged when the chimneys collapsed and stone fences around the countryside came crashing down as the earth shook. Damage occurred in Boston as well, church steeples fell and debris covered the ground making the streets impossible to navigate.     

Causes

 Many people thought that the earthquake was God's response to their sins. In the days after the quake people didn't know what to do so local ministers conduct prayer services in attempt to apologize to God for their sins.

By Madison Sherman

Conclusion

 Despite the devastation, the affected cit ies and towns worked together to get back to their normal l ives and back on their feet.

        

Sources

Object of the Month Archive About. (n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2015, from http:/ /www.masshist.org/object-of-the-m

onth/objects/ the-cape-ann-earthquake-of

-november-1755-2005-11-01  

Historic Earthquakes. (n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2015, from http:/ / earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquake

/states/events/1755_11_18.php  

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The Carly Times By: Carly Brady

One week has passed since the devastating Earthquake in Cape Ann, Massachusetts. This earthquake is the biggest recorded earthquake ever in the North East. This was a shocking 6.0 earthquake that took place on November 18th, 1755 at 4:30 am. The earthquake's epicenter was 25 miles from Cape Ann. This earthquake was not only felt in Cape Ann, but multiple surrounding areas including, Pembroke, Scituate, Cape Ann, Lake George New York, Chesapeake Bay, Annapolis River, and Nova Scotia. Around One hour and Fif teen minutes after the earthquake there was a small aftershock. A few more happened that week, but only one of them was felt in Boston. The structural damage was not good, but none have been reported dead, except for many f ish. As for structural damage, many chimneys and stone fences were thrown to the ground, anything that wasn?t very stable. Around 1,300 to 1,600 chimneys were reported damaged or broken. Many people have reported violent shaking of the ground. We don?t know how this happened, but many people are panicking. Lots of people believe this was an act of God and that he is angry at them therefore punishing them with an earthquake. Many reported it sounded like a gunshot. There were also reports of things fall ing from shelves. Normally, big earthquakes like this don?t happen here.

The people of Cape Ann and surrounding areas were very shocked, some stil l are. Damages will cost a lot. This is def initely an earthquake people will remember. Sources:

https:/ / docs.google.com/document/d/1IU

-EyEnmw6xrNdulNNqJOdJIwfLuwGqc

XqhG2_tfmIE/edit

MHS Collections Online: Verses Occasioned by the Earthquakes in the Month of November, 1755. (n.d.). Retrieved June 11, 2015, from http:/ /www.masshist.org/database/view

er.php?item_id=494&mode=small&img

_step=1&&pid=3&ft=Object of the Month&nodesc=1

Mr.Murray and Classmates

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case studyBy Eli Prybla

Cape Ann, 1755 Boston Massachuset ts, November 17th

The light shone through the window as I awoke from bed. I pulled up my stockings and stepped out of my room. I walked across the hallway into the main room where my wife Dorothy sat in a pile of straw. ''Hello Christopher dear.'' she said, as she put some tea on the furnace and gave me my porridge and my hat. As I walked out of the door to work, I saw my friend Jebidiah, so I walked with him to work. (I worked as a cobbler with Jebediah) As the day went on he had to go home to his wife who had dysentery, so I said my goodbyes to him, and I went home to my wife and son Thomas. I had brought home a bag of f lour so we prepared a loaf of bread for dinner.

Cape Ann, 1755 Boston Massachusetts, November 18th

I awoke very early. Around 3, I would guess. Dorothy slept beside me and I got up to see what woke me. I searched inside of our house for about an hour and a half but then I went back to bed. As I got settled I heard a terrible sound. Almost l ike a rumbling as if horses were stampeding to Cape Ann. The ground began to shake and churn and I could hear the cracking

of chimneys. I ushered Thomas and Dorothy out of their beds and under the table. I heard more creaking of wood and breaking of chimneys. We all huddled together like a pack of wolves trying to keep warm. The shaking seemed to last forever. But looking back at it, It couldn't have lasted more than 2 minutes. After the shaking calmed down, we cautiously came out from our cover and into the street. There were almost no roads to walk on. They were all cluttered by rubble from ruined houses and  destroyed chimneys. I told my family to stay at the house as I looked for other people. I saw Jebidiah standing with his wife who was lying down on a bed. He had pulled it from his house so that she could rest. I walked over to him and we searched for others. As we approached the center of town we could spot the caved in roof of the cobblers shop. All around we could see people cowering in the f ields as a brave few searched for others. Any others were begging for information as to how big (6.2 on the Richter scale). As I looked around I saw very few intact chimneys and wondered how many survived. We pulled out from the rubble as many people as we could f ind. Seeking immediate medical attention for those we did f ind. We could all tell that l ife was going to be very dif ferent in Cape Ann.

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Sources:

(n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2015, from https:/ / en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ 1755_Cape_Ann

_earthquake

Magnitude 5.5Dec. 20, 1940, 2:27 a.m. local t ime Dec. 24 8:43 a.m. local t ime. (n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2015, from http:/ / aki.bc.edu/quakes_historical.htm

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Evidence for Massachusetts Earthquakes

Evidence I saw of a plate boundary, are the mountains. I know these show the existence of plate boundaries, since it is the one of the only ways to form mountains. The way most mountains are created are when two land masses meet, during an earthquake. The heavier mass will then submerge under the lighter mass, and that pushes the lighter one upward, resulting in a mountain. The brand new mountain will vary in height depending on how long the plates are pushing against each other. Also, if there is magma underneath the plate boundaries, an earthquake can happen from the force of the upward force in the magma trying to escape. So you will know there are two plate boundaries somewhere near, if there are mountains or often a volcano. On Mount Holyoke, which we went to during our school camping trip, has an igneous rock formation named ?Titan?s Piazza.? Titan's Piazza was a result from a lava f low moving over cooling lava. This cause the f low to cool more quickly, and to stop f lowing in midair. This made it look like multiple glossy black spikes combined, with edgy sides, and edged with white lines. Also, Mount Holyoke wasn?t formed like a normal mountain. It was actually a volcano with 2 divergent boundaries, one of them pulled out farther than the other, and the volcano tilted downwards to the ground. The lava f lows at the original base of the mountain, are now the rock

By Will iam Edman

formations at the peak of the mountain. It is currently 935 feet tall. But if the volcano was stil l upward, and extinct so people could go on it, it would be around 14,000 feet tall. That is the evidence of plate boundaries or a failed rif t zone in Massachusetts.

The theory of ancient plate boundaries contributes to New England earthquakes because of failed rif t zones. A rif t zone is an area of the separation areas for dif ferent plate boundaries. Failed rif t zones were part of them, but were the unsuccessful cracks that didn?t separate the plates, because they weren?t part of the main separation. Around 450 mill ion years ago, New England used to be right next to what is now Morocco, Africa. This happened because all the continents had been pushed together by the plate movement.This supercontinent was called ?Pangaea.? Once this supercontinent started separating, which was around 250 mill ion years ago. when they started moving, it took all that 250 mill ion years to move around into where they are today. Before Pangaea separated, it may have looked a bit l ike Pac-Man, with some bays and gulfs along the coast.

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The North American Plate (which consists of Canada and the United States) and African plate are the ones I?m focusing on, they are the way the coasts of the countries were formed. If the failed rif t zone of Connecticut Rif t Valley had succeeded instead, a lot of New England's coast would be part of Morocco instead. The way the two plates interacted, is they diverged, which means they separated. This failed rif t zone in the past was stil l moving and changing, which may have caused earthquakes. That is the proof that I know about, of how ancient plate boundaries contribute to the New England earthquakes.

Evidence that I saw for proof of Massachusetts earthquakes, are the rocks called ?slickensides.? Slickensides are formed when 2 rocks from dif ferent boundaries rub against each other with their rough surfaces, that leave scratch marks that are going in the same direction. The information from Richard Litt le, who is a geologist in Greenfield MA, helped since he f irst told us about these rocks at the GCC Rock Park, where they had 2 slickensides that had been scratched against by other rocks which became slickensides. They also had another type that had started as one rock, but had built up too much tension, and broke into several pieces with rough surfaces. Now, here I have an explanation on how an earthquake happens, and the specif ics on what will happen to the plates and the plat boundaries. Most earthquakes happen when a rough edge of one side of a fault catches on the rough face of the opposite side of the fault when they are moving past each other in opposite directions.

The forces of the plates are tell ing them to keep moving in that same direction they were before they caught. That will build up A LOT of tension in the caught face of the boundary. As soon as the tension gets too high, the rock parts break and the tension is released as a big shock-wave, which we know as an earthquake. These shockwaves can vary in size and intensity, which we measure as the magnitude. Also, the more force there is, the bigger the shockwave is, which means more places are affected by the earthquake. These types of rocks show how the plates were moving, and the earthquake had an effect on the local geology. That is the evidence of Massachusetts earthquakes.

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case study

On our trip we saw many types of rocks. They included pillow lava, columnar basalt, vesicular basalt, slickensides, and tilted layers. Pillow lava, columnar basalt, and vesicular basalt are formed by lava cooling at dif ferent speeds from divergent plate boundaries that we saw on our trip. Slickensides are created by plates rubbing against each other. The tilted layers we saw at Turners Falls are formed by sediments building up and then the weight of the sediments pushed down the rock more to the east than to the west. Fred Venne told us about shallow inland seas, mountain building, rif t ing, and erosion. Wendy Curtis told us about Pangaea splitt ing up and how the Connecticut River was a failed rif t valley. Those are the rocks we saw, how they were formed, and the information the experts told us.Earthquakes happen in New England for many reasons. One reason is New England used to be on the plate boundary of the Africa and the North American plates, when the earth was a giant landform called Pangaea. The plate boundary was a divergent plate boundary meaning the plates are moving away from each other. This causes weak points in the in the plate and tension which can cause earthquakes at those weak points, but they might not also. The experts told us about when Pangaea split up there were shallow inland seas then mountain building the rif t ing and then erosion. Those are some reasons there are earthquakes in New England.There are many examples of evidence of earthquakes in the past. Some

examples are slickensides and tilted layers. Slickensides look like colored lines on smooth rock and a like like crystals from a geode on the rock. We saw slickensides at Turners Falls that looked like purple lines on rock that was on a semi steep hill the rock around it was smooth were the slickensides were. slickensides are formed when plates rub against each other rock during an earthquake. Tilted layers are indirect evidence of earthquakes because they are formed on a rif t valley which is created by divergent plate boundaries during an earthquake. At Turners Falls we saw tilted layers on a failed rif t valley on the bank of the Connecticut river so there must have been a divergent plate boundary there that the layers fell into and tilted. The tilted layers we saw were jagged at the top of the layers pointed towards the sky and smooth on the top, some were also easy to break off and then split to reveal fossils. That is evidence of earthquakes we saw on our f ieldwork.On my f ieldwork I learned about evidence of earthquakes like slickensides and reasons there have been earthquakes in New England like how the Connecticut river is a failed rif t valley. I learned about the rocks we saw like columnar basalt and tilted layers, also we got questions answered by the experts. That is what I did on my f ieldwork.

Sources: Fred Venne, Museum Curator, May 6,2015

Wendy Curtis, Tectonic Plates Expert, May 7,2015

By Connor Andrews

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case study

The group of Christa Mcaulif fe 7th grade students went on a f ield work to Western MA. On this f ield work we searched through many dif ferent sites and examined many dif ferent types of rocks. This was to aim for our expeditionary learning on how there are earthquakes in New England. We got to go see many sites and talk to many experts to help us f ind evidence for our expedition. Throughout this essay I will be guiding you through our f ield work and what we did to f ind the evidence that we needed to support how there are earthquakes in New England.

Our f ield trip helped us better understand and give us examples of the ancient plate boundaries in many ways. Examples of rocks that helped us are basalt, sedimentary rocks and slickensides. These rocks helped us show that there were lava f lows between the boundaries because they hardened and cooled to become columnar basalt. The experts helped us by supporting this by having Fred Venne tell us dif ferent steps or the cycle of this all. The f irst step was shallow inland seas,mountains forming, rif t ing, and now present day the Connecticut Rif t Valley. Another thing the experts talked about is how in a failed rif t valley, the plates have not split apart correctly. Turners Falls was an example for this because this piece of land did not split apart

correctly. The experts talked about this as if it was like pizza dough, and how it doesn't break apart easily. This is some examples that our f ield trip helped us understand and f ind examples about the ancient plate boundaries.

The ancient plate boundaries contributed to earthquakes in New England in many ways. One example for this is that New England was located near the North American and African plate boundaries. The land formed into a big supercontinent called Pangaea. This shows that the plate boundaries were near and if pangaea splits earthquakes can become common. Another example   these plate boundaries were diverging plates, this tells us that the plates were moving apart. The forces that went along with this was tension. This was when the two plates were pulling apart and then getting caught with each other, even though they were caught they stil l were pulling apart and then they f inally split. This then causes stress between both plates and earthquakes become in contact. The experts were saying how we could of been in Africa today because there are some parts that split apart incorrectly (failed rif t valleys). This is why the ancient plate boundaries contributed to earthquakes in New England.

By: Samantha Stewart

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Findings about earthquakes in New England

Plate boundaries (being the areas where tectonic plates meet) are everywhere. Some rocks we say that related to boundaries would be the pillow basalt.This is related to the boundaries because it came from a rif t or a crack in the earth.  This rif t formed when the African and North American plates split and caused faults to form.  Wendy Circuits told us that if the African and North American plates split in a dif ferent way Massachusetts may be a part of Africa.  Evidence of this could be found at Turners in the form of a rif t.  This rif t was evident in a large mass of  basalt rock had spewed come up as it pulled the crust apart in the form of lava that cooled underwater.280 Mill ions years ago the earth was not as it is today. It was the a supercontinent known as Pangaea.  It contained all of today's continents until it split and the continents diverged and the earth began experiencing many earthquakes due to the large amount of seismic activity.  The forces that caused this were the Mantle f lows under the crust pulling them apart even today.  These forces are stil l affecting the continents today and may eventually combine again in the newly formed Pangaea Ultima When the earth's continents were a part of Pangea, Massachusetts was combined with Africa but as the continents started to diverge (the act of splitt ing apart) they were pulling apart these would have created many earthquakes. The

plate boundary that was created is now known as the Mid Atlantic Ridge and is stil l splitt ing today.  This will build up pressure and release it in earthquakes.  If the North American and African plates separated dif ferently we could be in Africa.

Wendy Curtis, Plate Tectonics Expert, 5/7/15

By Micheal Morin

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Earthquake Essay

A good way to learn about geology is by f inding the types of rocks in an area. Igneous rocks are formed when lava or magma cools. That makes igneous rocks a good way to learn about volcanic and tectonic past. In Massachusetts there is an ancient failed rif t valley which could have put eastern Massachusetts in Morocco. The tilted landscape here lets us see basalts from ancient lava f lows. This is just one thing we saw on the trip that was related to plate tectonics.

250 mill ion years ago the world was one land mass. This land mass was called Pangaea. Massachusetts bordered Africa on Pangaea. Pangaea was not incredibly stable though and broke apart into multiple continents. North America and Africa started to diverge. Earthquakes at diverging plates are caused by tension between plates as they pull apart.

One thing on the trip that was directly related to earthquake was the tilted rocks at Turners Falls. This was an area where bil l ions of earthquakes tilted the layers of rock on there sides . The rocks were mainly sedimentary but there was also an ancient lava f low that caused there to be some pillow basalt. This has much to do with are we prepared because it shows evidence of ancient earthquakes In New England leaving the question if those ancient zones of weakness are

causing earthquakes today.

Citations,

-Dr. Christine Brandon UMass Amherst

-Many science papers from class

By: Connor Fontano

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Expert Q and A

Question: If we create another fault, would it make the earthquakes smaller?

Answer: No, because it doesn?t matter which fault the earthquake is on. All you would be doing is moving the same size earthquake to another location.

Question: Why is California so unstable.

Answer: Some scientists say it is unstable because of the great amount of earthquakes that have occurred in the past.

Question: If we create another fault, would it make the earthquakes smaller?

Answer: No, because it doesn?t matter which fault the earthquake is on. All you would be doing is moving the same size earthquake to another location.

Question: Why is California so unstable.

Answer: Some scientists say it is unstable because of the great amount of earthquakes that have occurred in the past.John Ebel gave us some great explanations but he definitely explained the process of an earthquake well. The explanation was; Imagine putting a brick in a vice and rotating the crank over and over, sooner or later the brick will break due to the pressure. Now think of it as an earthquake, its the same process.

By Ayesha Shaikh

John Ebel                               John Ebel has a Ph.D. in biological science from the California Institute of technology (1981), and got his A.B for engineering and applied science from Harvard university. Today he works as a Professor at Boston college Earthquake Seismology, Exploration Seismology, Theoretical Seismology.

-This trimester the 7th grade was learning about earthquakes, John Ebel was the perfect expert to come and talk to us about how earthquakes form and the science behind earthquakes. We loved having him and we learned alot!During the presentation John Ebel answered many of our questions.

Question: How big was the biggest earthquake in the world?

Answer: The biggest earthquake in the world had a magnitude of 9.5 off the coast of chile in 1960.

Question:Will the African plate and the Eurasian plate ever collide?

Answer: Yes, actually even though the African plate is moving extremely slowly in thousands of years it 's possible for Africa to collide into Europe.

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Expert Q and A

John Ebel originates from Natick but is a professor at Boston College. John E. Ebel is the Chair of the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Boston College. Ebel received an A.B. degree in physics from Harvard University in 1975 and a Ph.D. on biological science. Undergrad- AB harvard- 1975 engineering and applied science Phd- Cali institute of technology 1981. Weather climate geophysics earth systems seminare. Earthquake prediction is a highly desired but elusive goal of seismology research.

Explain why John came in to the school (how he came in to talk to the 7th grade scholars)

Question: In mill ions of years will there be mountains in the middle of North America?

Answer: If there's enough squeezing there could certainly be mountains

Question: How big was the biggest earthquake in the u.s.a and the world?

Answer: In the Alaska, u.s, there was a 9.2m earthquake and off the coast of Chile in 1960 there was a 9.5 earthquake.

Question: Is there a way to stop an earthquake?

Answer: If there was a way to take off all of the pressure of an earthquake then yes.

Question: Why do earthquakes happen?

Answer: Earthquakes happen because of relieved pressure.

Question: Similar to glaciers, do mountains also cause dips in the crust?

Answer: Mountains definitely cause dips but not completely in the crust material as glaciers but about 40 kilometers under the surface there's something called moho which is a sharp change in earthquake properties, the moho goes down below mountains.

Question: Are moonquakes more common than earthquakes

Answer: Moonquakes are less common and that is what we would expect because they don?t have plate tectonics on the moon so you don't have the plates moving around and rubbing together causing the quakes, and of course you don't have people up up there injecting f luid to get manmade earthquakes.

Facts: Moon quakes happen because earthquake, sun, and the moon is a body in space and each have gravitational traction and the earth bulges towards the sun and those bulges move around as the planets move in the orbit and as bulges change that works the interior.

The moon is made of some material that comes from inside from inside the earth.

When a rock cracks there's proppant sand that holds the cracks open so oils and stuff can come out but some of this is dirty f luid and people get rid of and these people are dril lers so they have

By Jack Downey

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opinion speech

Hello people of New England, I am here to tell you about an imminent threat, an earthquake hitt ing the Boston area. Now I know what your thinking. ?Why should we care if Boston is hit by an earthquake, it 's never happened before, why now?? Well l itt le did you know, New England is a place where earthquakes hit very often. If we look back in time we've had several quakes, 1755 a 6.2 earthquake hit Cape Ann and in 1988 a 5.9 magnitude quake hit New England. We need to priorit ize aid in case an earthquake hits Boston. Why Boston? Because Boston is built on landfil ls and loose soil. One larger earthquake and BAM, no more Boston.  

First we shall supply food ,water, and sanitation to the people of Boston, by doing so we will stop chollera, hunger and thirst. If we look back to the 2010 Haiti earthquake Red Cross said they helped stop cholera, but there was stil l an outbreak. If we give the people medicine we can stop disease. If we don?t give them food or water, dehydration and hunger will kil l many people. In Haiti we gave them 179 mill ion gallons of water and they didn?t get dehydrated.  This is all very important because it will keep The people alive and well along with getting extra resources to those in need.

Secondly we will focus on Evacuating the city. People are stil l out there, and there stil l could be buildings that could crumble at any moment kil l ing dozens. If we immobilize evacuation crews to help get people out of the city there will be less injuries due to fall ing buildings. If we look back at the 2005 Katrina hurricane, they saved hundreds by evacuating the city before the hurricane. even though we can?t predict

earthquakes we can stil l save the survivors from fall ing buildings and other dangers.

The third most important thing, temporary shelter they need this because most of the houses and apartments were destroyed. Without it, the people of Boston have had to endure freezing temperatures with no place to sleep but alleyways and streets. If they don't receive  this then they will grow sick and weak. Temporary homes will help keep out the cold and keep in the heat.

Once they have temporary shelters we can start to prep for future earthquakes; We will rebuild the city, this time bigger and better. More earthquake proof buildings, it will be built on a more sturdy stable ground. We can and will place pre positioned supplies throughout the city. We will teach the children of Boston the dances of safety. If we look back yet again to Haiti, after the quake the teachers taught the children song and dances that help raise awareness of earthquakes. Then we can rest assured knowing that the next generation will know how to react when an earthquake hits Boston.

This is how we must priorit ize aid: f irst food, water, and sanitation, then search and rescue, thirdly temporary homes, and f inally disaster risk reduction. The sooner we act the less people will die and the less buildings will lay in ruin. As Petra Nemcova once said, ?we cannot stop natural disasters but we can arm ourselves with knowledge.? Thank you and remember, only you can help

By: Cameron Bassett

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opinion speech

We all know that earthquakes are constantly wreaking havoc on unsuspecting cit ies across the world, but have you ever stopped to think that maybe it could happen to us, right here in Boston? Well stop thinking, because it?s not a matter of if , it?s a matter of when. Whether you like it or not, earthquakes have a rich history in New England and Massachusetts. What if an earthquake struck Boston? How would it affect the city? How would it affect us? But most importantly, how can we protect ourselves and recover when one does happen? Well, f irst, even before an earthquake occurs, I think that the risk of harm coming to the city and people should be gotten rid of. If we can get rid of, or even just reduce the risk of an epidemic occurring, we won?t have to do any of the responses explained in this article. We?ve learned the cold truth from New England?s history of earthquakes that our buildings can?t take the pressure - the tectonic pressure, that is. If we want to stop the past from happening again, we need to take action, and we need to do it in the right order, because priorit izing aid is nothing to be done wrong. The way you do it can literally mean the dif ference between life and death. We didn?t take this into account during the hurricane Katrina response when we should have, so response was scrambled and very slow. These reasons are why I have compiled a list, in order from most to least importance, on how aid should be priorit ized, prior to, and post earthquake.

When an earthquake does happen again in the Boston area, we should be prepared. Being prepared for an earthquake will dramatically reduce the number of people harmed. The majority of Boston?s infrastructure was built in

the mid 20th century - before earthquake building codes were even put in place. Even the buildings that were build when earthquake building codes existed rarely followed them. Also, a considerable amount of Boston?s buildings and apartments are built on land that was f il led in on top of swamps & marshes. Doing this has caused the land to become unstable and caused buildings to be much more susceptible to sinking and shif t ing - especially in a disaster such as an earthquake. I feel l ike we should take these facts into account and prevent buildings from collapsing by rebuilding and supporting them, because as we hear from countless newspapers, geographers and photographers - ?Earthquakes don?t kil l people, buildings do?. If this threat didn?t exist, very few people, maybe even none, would be harmed. In fact, that?s the exact reason why earthquakes - such as the Haiti earthquake - caused so much damage when a much higher magnitude earthquake did barely anything to another area nearby. If people can get rid of the risk caused by the cit ies? old and frail infrastructure, the city, and its cit izens, will almost certainly be safe.

The f irst priority after an earthquake has struck, however, should, and always be - food, water, sanitation and health. If an earthquake strikes hard and stil l harms and displaces people even after preparation - food, water, sanitation and health will def initely keep healthy and holding on. Food and water are the two most vital resources for l ife, so without them, people will struggle to survive. For instance, currently in Haiti, countless Non Governmental Organizations are pulling out of relieving the disaster in the affected areas and have stopped

By Omar Massoud

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, water, sanitation and health. If an earthquake strikes hard and stil l harms and displaces people even after preparation - food, water, sanitation and health will def initely keep healthy and holding on. Food and water are the two most vital resources for l ife, so without them, people will struggle to survive. For instance, currently in Haiti, countless Non Governmental Organizations are pulling out of relieving the disaster in the affected areas and have stopped feeding resources such as food and water to keep survivors in Haiti, well, surviving. People in Haiti are starting to become il l and some are even dying because of it. Another big need to keep people safe is sanitation. The lack of it can dramatically reduce the standard of l iving and cause diseases to easily spread. This could be seen in hurricane Katrina. While the Louisiana roads f looded with water, the superdome f looded with people, as earlier that day it was opened for the public as a shelter. Food, water, and especially sanitation lacked in the tightly cramped space of the dome. Il lness started to spread as people slowly evacuated. The people were eventually broken up and sent away. Although these two events have had devastating effects on people and their communities, they helped us learn for the future and realize, once and for all, that food, water, sanitation and health should always come f irst post-earthquake.

Soon after an earthquake occurs and people have been treated for injuries and supplied food & water, temporary permanent housing should be built - especially quickly if no disaster preparation has taken place. With huge earthquakes such as the Haitian one inf licting huge amounts of damage - almost wiping out the entire cit ies? infrastructure and leaving 1.5 mill ion people homeless, there?s no reason to think that the same couldn?t happen to us. Although our buildings aren?t as poorly constructed as theirs, we?re stil l in a dangerous situation with our building quality. ?So what are you getting at?? you might ask. What I?m getting

at is that if an earthquake was to happen after or especially before major preparation occurred and apartments and housing were destroyed, people would need safe, spread out places to stay while evacuation and rebuilding went underway.

Lastly, I think that supporting host families and improving livelihoods should take place. Although this priority is a necessity for long term living, it is def initely not required to do as quickly as the others. Things that this priority includes are: funding families and parents to get jobs, buying groceries and fuel, repaying people?s debts, and educating their children. Doing this greatly improves the economy and rebuild speed of the area and it keeps the community members strong and healthy. One big way that this priority does this is through jobs. If communities focus on jobs, people can improve their l ivelihoods and support their family and their community with labor and money. This priority also greatly supports host families who are holding homeless people by giving them money to buy food, house cleaners, and other basic human needs. The Red Cross has already done this in Haiti and supported generous community members, and they are ready to do it again. Not everyone can be housed in temporary shelters, so it is good that people are stepping up to house them in their own homes. Supporting families has definitely helped people get back in the swing of things, and has greatly improved the economy and livelihood of people in many affected areas. As you can see, preparation, fast response, and long term support can greatly affect how an earthquake affects us - as people, and as a community. I greatly appreciate your attention today, and I urge you to spread the word about preparation for an earthquake, because as Stephen King once said, ?There?s no harm in hoping for the best, as long as you?re prepared for the worst.? Thank you.

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opinion speech

When was the last t ime you?ve heard about an earthquake in Massachusetts? Do you think we are prepared when it inevitably strikes? I don't think so, with an already provoke environment we are more vulnerable than ever as stated in Boston's earthquake problems.I believe that Massachusetts and all of New England for that matter is extremely il l prepared in the event of an earthquake. The transportation infrastructure is suffering due to a lack of funds and older buildings are in dire need of an update to comply with the 1973 seismic code as mentioned in the Boston earthquake problem text. I believe that having a large amount of heavy machinery to reduce risk after a disaster is just as (or more) important than having lots of food and water stockpiled. The machinery would begin repair efforts as soon as the seismic event is over to keep casualties and property damage as minimal as possible and to cost as litt le money as possible while maintaining hospitable conditions for people to live in. I will also talk about how the climate can impact this and many other things.

As I mentioned earlier, I believe that having prepositioned supplies in place to help reduce risk after a disaster is extremely important. as mentioned previously, I think the key to this is heavy machinery to aid in repair efforts.I believe this because the heavy machinery will assist in clearing and repairing blocked or damaged roads to allow for supplies to f low in at a more

eff icient and faster rate to minimize chaos and further damage. This as we learned was not a top priority for FEMA after the events of hurricane Katrina. Due to the roads not being of a suitable condition, it took the national guard multiple days to arrive and f inally stabilize and apply order to the disaster ridden area. Also the machinery has a use even after clearing the roads. They could help move the wounded and the sick, move supplies to areas inaccessible by trucks and even help evacuate people in a life or death situation. This was a key factor after the devastating events of the Haiti earthquake, and the machinery not only cleared the roads and also helped move around supplies, they were also an essential factor in the rebuilding efforts. Whether they be moving a wall, some cinderblocks, or even a child these were very versatile and the efforts would have been slower and more dangerous without them.

In my eyes this may not be as important as risk reduction, but food and water is stil l essential in the event of a seismic occurrence. This would allow many things to happen, the f irst being that the city could stil l hold onto some polit ical dominance due to there being no need to rob people and loot stores. It could also be used as a f irst response tool for when people fall into a designated area (The garden or convention center in Boston presumably.) They could feed them while more supplies come from the other organizations aiding relief efforts.  It could also be used to help

By Jonathan Spalti

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keep people healthy after an earthquake because there would be medicine in those stockpiles as well. There are some drawbacks to this though as we learned during hurricane Katrina. With so many people in one small area there isn't enough food to go around so some resorted to violence to get their hands on supplies. So with that they should attempt to scale their supply with the population to prevent this. This was executed with more success during the 1906 San Francisco f ires and earthquake. With military run camps all of the supplies were dispensed with a litt le more intell igence to make them last a lot longer. With food and water along with a few minor adjustments this aid would definitely be my # 2.

My next point is arguably one of the most dif f icult things that could be done after a disaster which is why it is so essential. That would have to be resource distribution and allocation. The reason why is because the likelihood of maintaining large amounts of infrastructure after an earthquake is very small especially in New England, because there are so many buildings not complying with the 1973 seismic code set in place. Also even if by some miracle you stil l maintained all or most of your infrastructure you couldn't take advantage of it without machinery to aid the process because if you need to call someone there will presumably be no phone lines and the radio towers probably fell down. That means that all educated disaster relief choices are going to be a coin f l ip until disaster management agencies like FEMA arrive to aid you. Also they couldn't get down there because the roads are blocked because all the machinery is stil l trying to clear it. You could make minor decisions like if government off icials get extra rations, but other than that you are waiting for them to arrive to assist you. So with all of this the local government needs to step up to bat here and just swing til l they hit a

homerun because they are being relied on by countless people to help them through this event . This was no more visible than during the hurricane Katrina where they made less than great decisions even with minor aid from FEMA. This was executed with more precision though in the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and f ires, where the military was more intell igent with their resources.

This is going to be one of the worst parts of this. What happens if the earth quakes in WINTER. In New England winter is cold wet and miserable so we are not going to like it. The states need make accommodations for inclement weather so they could take advantage of snow plows and also some heating apparatus to keep large buildings warm even during the harshest of winters. Also though winter earthquakes aren't the best for anyone if you are left without a house it is even worse. This all t ies back to the city strictly enforcing the seismic code compliance. As we learned with a young boy from earthquake in Haiti ?The buildings don't explode they implode.? That is a symptom of a weak or rigid foundation creating a crack that collapsed the building in on itself . Also in the Bostons arthquake problem text is said that the transportational infrastructure is suffering due to lack of funds which can also be a hazard in this instance.

As I mentioned I believe that in the event of this disaster machinery will be king in rebuilding the area and reducing risk. I would like to thank you all for l istening to this and hope this has inspired you to go out to make a change and help us prepare for this inevitable event. As said by Francis of Assisi ?Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.?