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A SHAKY COUNTRY. CHILE AND ITS EARTHQUAKES

Welcome everyone.

I will talk about earthquakes. I chose this topic because I am from Chile, a country marked by

different earthquakes throughout its history, some of them very strong.

I have personally experienced two or three strong earthquakes in Chile. Indeed, the 2010

earthquake was strong: its magnitude was 8.8 in the Richter scale, and it lasted for about 5 to 6

minutes. I don’t know if anyone has experienced an earthquake? It’s a terrifying experience, but

in Chile we have a lot of jokes about them.

1. First, what is an earthquake?

When I prepared this presentation, I was just thinking about the first class: the professor said

that we can speak about relaxing things. Well… I need to explain what an earthquake is (and…I

am an historian).

Well… An earthquake is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from the sudden

release of energy in the Earth’s lithosphere (that is the most superficial layer of the earth, which

is on the magma (which is a hot fluid of igneous rocks) and, if you see all the globe, it’s like a

puzzle). This energy release from interaction of two plates, creates seismic waves.

This is an Anatomy of an Earthquake. There are two plates, which are massive rocks and whose

movement along faults triggers earthquakes. The fault is the fracture in the rocks. The focus or

hypocenter is the point within the earth where an earthquake rupture starts, and the epicenter is

the point at the surface of the earth directly above the focus. For example, when I say that an

earthquake happened in Pisa or in Santiago, we talk about the epicenter that is not the original

point of the rupture.

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Earthquakes can range in size from those that are so weak that they cannot be felt to those

violent enough to toss people around and destroy whole cities.

At the Earth’s surface, earthquakes manifest themselves by shaking and displacing or disrupting

the ground. When the epicenter of a large earthquake is located offshore, the seabed may be

displaced sufficiently to cause a tsunami. Earthquakes can also trigger landslides, and

occasionally volcanic activity.

Why do Earthquakes happen?

They are usually caused when rock underground suddenly breaks along a fault. This sudden

release of energy causes the seismic waves that make the ground shake. When two blocks of

rocks or two plates are rubbing against each other, they stick a little.

They don’t just slide smoothly; the rocks catch on each other. The rocks are still pushing against

each other, but not moving. After a while, the rocks break because of all the pressure that’s built

up. When the rocks break, the earthquake occurs.

During an earthquake and afterward, the plates or blocks of rock start moving, and they

continue to move until they get stuck again. Then, as I said, the spot underground where the

rock breaks are called the focus of the earthquake. The place right above the focus (on top of the

ground) is called the epicenter of the earthquake.

2. How are earthquakes measured?

They are recorded by a seismographic network. Each seismic station in the network measures

the movement of the ground at the site. The slide of one block of rock over another in an

earthquake releases energy that makes the ground vibrate. That vibration pushes the adjoining
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piece of ground and causes it to vibrate, and thus the energy travels out from the earthquake in a

wave.

There are many ways to measure different aspects of an earthquake:

1. Magnitude: is the most common measure of an earthquake’s size. It is a measure of the

size of the earthquake source and is the same number no matter where you are or what

the shaking feels like.

The Richter scale is an outdated method that is no longer used – it measured the largest

wiggle on the recording, but other magnitude scales measure different parts of the

earthquake.
The United States Geological Survey currently reports earthquakes magnitudes using the

Moment Magnitude Scale, though many other magnitudes are calculated for research and

comparison.
But, now, it is the most common measurement scale. From magnitude 2.5 to 8 or more. Each

magnitude has a brief description. And, the most powerful earthquake ever recorded was in

Valdivia (Chile) in 1960: 9.5

Also, this is an exponential scale (not lineal), an earthquake of 7.0 releases about 33 times as

much energy as one of 6.0 and nearly 1,000 times as one of 5.0.

This is a seismograph. It’s like a needle in suspension that leaves a record of earth’s

movements in a paper.
2. We also can measure an earthquake by its intensity. This is a measure of the shaking and

damage caused by the earthquake; this value changes from location to location, because

it’s a subjective scale.

This table gives modified Mercalli scale intensities that are typically observed at locations

near the epicenter of the earthquake. It’s very descriptive.

For example, eleven: Few, if any, structures remain standing. Bridges destroyed. Broad

fissures in ground. Underground pipe lines completely out of service. Earth slumps and

land slips in soft ground. Rails bent greatly.

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Also, this is a more pedagogical scale. For example, in Chile, people know that if you

can’t remain on your feet because of the waves, it’s a strong earthquake, and there is a

danger of tsunami.
0.14- 1.41

These two scales are complementary. For example, we had two strong earthquakes in

2010. Everyone knows the Haiti Earthquake was destructive (level nine in the Mercalli

scale), but it was less strong than the Chile Earthquake (8.8). Both were 9 in the Mercalli

scale, but the Chilean one was stronger and longer, while the Haitian one was deadlier.

Before this general information, Now I talk about Chile. First… Do you know where Chile

is?

Its position is very important, because Chile is in the major area in the basin of the Pacific Ocean

named “Ring of Fire” Why? Because there occur many earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. In

this area are located the most active tectonic plates in the world. It has 452 volcanoes (more

than 75% of the world’s active) And, about 90% of the world’s earthquakes occur along the Ring

of Fire. There are countries like Japan, Indonesia, California in the USA, Mexico and Chile.

For example, there are the earthquakes that occurred in Chile between the mornings of February

14 and 15 of this year.

Chile is a hotspot for earthquakes because the Nazca plate, a tectonic plate which moves

eastwards with a rate of 6.6 cm per year, collides with the South American plate off the Chilean

Coast. The Nazca plate is submerged below the South American plate, and the pressure building

up between the two plates is eventually released in the form of an earthquake. This phenomenon
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is called “subduction movement”. For this, we have this weird topography, with two mountain

range (Los Andes, and the Chilean coastal), and a valley.

During this kind of earthquake, the pressure is released within minutes. For example, the plates

shifted by more than 30 meters in the 1960 earthquake. Land was violently shifted up or down

several meters, fundamentally changing the Chilean Landscape.

Then… we have a lot of memorable earthquakes in the History of Chile (we have almost 3 huge

earthquakes every 5 years).

During the colonial period, a great earthquake struck Santiago on the night of May 13 and it is

said to have brought virtually every building in the city to the ground. The earthquake was the

most damaging in the history of Santiago. Damaged buildings included the Saint Augustine

Church, one of the most important buildings of this period. And it is also where it is located one

of the main myths associated with earthquakes: El Cristo de Mayo, which is a baroque crucifix.

During the earthquake, inside the church, the Cristo de Mayo was undamaged except for its

crown of thorns which had fallen to Christ’s neck, despite the diameter of the crown being

smaller than that of the head. The myth says that if someone moves the crown to its original

position (over the head), a new earthquake will start. For this, nowadays this crucifix is still

called “The lord of Agony”

1960

Another historical earthquake is the one that shook Valdivia, a southern city in Chile, in 1960.

This earthquake and the following aftershocks killed five thousand people and left another 2

million homeless. Registering a magnitude of 9.5, it was one of the most powerful tremors ever

recorded.
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The epicenter of this tremendous shaking was just off the coast under the Pacific Ocean. The

earthquake caused huge landslides of debris down the mountains of the region, as well as a

series of tsunamis.

After leaving Chile, the tsunami traveled hundreds of miles west toward Hawaii, The Philippines

and Japan, where hundreds also died. In fact, the waves set off by this earthquake bounced back

and forth across the Pacific Ocean for a Week. The aftershocks were recorded for a full 30 days

after the main event.

We can see how this earthquake was informed by the news in the United State.

And, we can see a tsunami forecast model…

And…this is the last huge earthquake in Chile. My Family and I were close to the epicenter. This

occurred on February 27 in 2010.

With my brother, we organized a party in my house. We were in the yard and, in the middle of

the night, at three o’clock, the soil began to shake. Most of my friends were drunk, and they

thought that this wave was the alcohol effect. But…I was sober and said: this is an earthquake.

For some minutes the earthquake was very violent. I looked at my house and I thought it was

going to collapse (it moved completely…like an articulated skeleton). Then…my mom in pajamas

screamed a mix between a Christian pray and vulgar words, while my dad quietly searched for

his pants.

The light was cut off and the only thing I remember in the darkness was seeing the sky full of

stars. I really thought, for one second, that it was the apocalypse….and then everything stopped.

It was very impressive.

We can see this video… it’s a 12th floor.

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This earthquake caused widespread damage on land and set off a tsunami that devastated some

coastal areas of the country. Together, the earthquake and tsunami were responsible for more

than 500 deaths.

The magnitude was 8.8. The initial event was succeeded in the following weeks by hundreds of

aftershocks.

Though damage to structures within the zone of the earthquake was likely limited by stringent

building codes instituted in the wake of the 1960 earthquake and revised several times during

the 90s, many buildings still sustained significant damage, but they did not collapse (also, there

were 3 o 4 iconic building which collapsed because they were outside the building construction

regulations).

Also, it was a huge tsunami. But…after all, the next day was like another normal and boring day.

Also, a lot of jokes and “memes” appeared.

Let’s see the testimony of a United State citizen:

And for example, look these two kinds of reactions:

And the Chilean jokes about that…this kind of reactions.

And another thing very typical is the “terremoto”, which is a very alcoholic cocktail based on a

kind of wine named pipeño, pisco (which is like a brandy), grenadine (a syrup) and a pineapple

ice-cream. It’s very sweet and, for this, you can drink quickly without problems (It’s like a

dessert). But… a few minutes later, the repercussions will begin: the earth will begin to move

and shake. For this, it’s very dangerous…you can be very damaged.

You can drink one terremoto… the second one is named “replica” (is like aftershocks) … and the

third one is “tsunami” …and you will lose your mind.

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Also, there are a lot of “memes”. Like this:

1. This is the ex-president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, with her Minister of Interior.
2. Apocalypses
3. Bachelet in the National office of Emergency…
4. Post it on Facebook.
5. This is Coat of Arms of Chile. With a huemul (like a deer) and a condor (like an eagle).

Chileans make many jokes about the catastrophes in Chile ... but I also think that it is an

optimistic way to see life despite its misfortunes. At the end, the next day, most people return to

their daily lives.