Earthquake Hazards and Risk Reduction Methods

EARTHQUAKE HAZARDS - Refer to earthquake agents which have the potential to cause
harm to vulnerable targets which can either be humans, animals or even your animals.

The effects of an earthquake can be classified as primary or secondary.

are things that happen immediately after the earthquake hits; such
Primary Effects -
as building shake, surface rupture, road cracks or fall l in, building collapse, etc..
Secondary Effects – this happen when ground movement results to other types of
destruction.
Example: landslide, Tsunami, soil liquefaction and fire.
7 MICRO AND MAJOR TECTONIC PLATES MAP SHOWING THE RING OF FIRE
The Earth is always on the move due to the motion of the tectonic plates. Seven major plates
comprise most of the seven continents and the Pacific Ocean. They are named after nearby
land masses, oceans, or regions.

African, Antarctic, Eurasian, Indo-Australian, North American, Pacific

and South American.

3 TYPES OF PLATE BOUNDARIES

A CONVERGENT BOUNDARY
occurs when two tectonic
plates push together

A DIVERGENT BOUNDARY
occurs when two plates
are spreading apart, as
at seafloor ridges or
continental rift zones
such as the East Africa
Rift. The molten rock
rises from the Earth’s

 TRANSFORM BOUNDARY
when two tectonic plates slide
past each other.
PRIMARY EFFECTS OF EARTHQUAKE
1. SURFACE RUPTURE
2. ROAD CRACKS
3. BUILDING COLLAPSE

SECONDARY EFFECT OF EARTHQUAKES

LANDSLIDES - the sliding down of a mass of earth or rock from a
mountain or cliff.
TSUNAMI - is a series of extremely long waves caused by a large and
sudden displacement of the ocean, usually the result of an earthquake
below or near the ocean floor.
LIQUEFACTION - during an earthquake, the shaking ground may become
much less solid as soil and groundwater combine to form a material
that acts like a liquid.
FIRES - often associated with broken electrical and gas lines are one of
the common side effects of earthquakes. Gas is set free as gas lines are
broken and a spark will start bringing an "inferno".

The most commonly used methods of reducing earthquake risk

are as follows:
1. EFFECTIVE RECORDING AND INTERPRETATION OF GROUND MOTION –
this can be done y effective instrumentation in order to determine the
location, strength and frequency of earthquakes. This assists in
providing alerts and warnings, especially to high-risk and vulnerable
areas for preparation and emergency response.
2. CONSTRUCTING SEISMIC MAP – shows the potential hazards in a given
area.
3. DEVELOPING RESISTANT STRUCTURES – resistant structures are able to
withstand collapse by redistributing forces caused by seismic waves
through shear walls

Seismic waves are caused by the sudden movement

of materials within the Earth, such as slip along a
fault during an earthquake. Volcanic eruptions,
explosions, landslides, avalanches, and even rushing
rivers can also cause seismic waves.
Seismographs are instruments used to record the
motion of the ground during an earthquake. They are
installed in the ground throughout the world and
operated as part of a seismographic network. The
earliest "seismoscope" was invented by the Chinese
philosopher Chang Heng