1964 Alaska Earthquake Essay

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The 1964 Great Alaska Earthquake

Introduction

In 1964, a ginormous earthquake occured in Alaska that destroyed a few cities. This earthquake happened in Prince Williams Sound, Alaska. It had a magnitude of 9.2, and the earthquake had the intensity of VII. The fault that the earthquake occurs make the boundary between the North American and the Pacific plate.

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During the 1964 Great Alaska Earthquake a lot of buildings and properties were destroyed. The earthquake caused a tsunami and many landslides that destroyed Valdez, Anchorage, and Seward. The earthquake caused the tsunami by making a part of the seafloor elevate. Eventually, because of the earthquake the town of Valdez was moved because it was not stable. This killer quake was so strong that it released twice the amount of damage as the 1906 San Francisco earthquake (magnitude was 7.9), and the 1964 Alaskan quake killed 131 people. The earthquake was also able to tilt 46,42 square miles of an area. The occurrence of earthquakes along this fault wasn’t very high but there were many aftershocks, the quake went on for 5 minutes. The other Alaskan earthquake that occurred on that fault a had a magnitude of 8.
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Here’s an example of a person who got involved, Tom Brocher studied the aftermath of the earthquake, he’s part of the U.S Geological Survey. The North American Aerospace Defense Command (Norad) Command center was the place for people to go for damage assessments and support. Many of the command centers were getting supported by the United States of America Army, (USAA). The earthquake was so powerful that President Johnson declared the Great Alaskan Earthquake a major disaster area, on March 28.

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