IT'S THE FLOODS, STUPID!

While I don't want to minimize the physical effects of large earthquakes and hurricanes, we have witnessed that the biggest damage in two recent events in 2011 was caused by floods rather than the shaking or high winds: the tsunami in Japan and the floods accompanying all the rain in the hurricane Irene.

I have been in many earthquakes up to magnitude 6 as I spent four years in Pasadena, CA, and three months in Japan. I also lived in a suburb of Denver, CO, for 15 years that included the time of earthquakes increasing in magnitude that got in to the 5-6 range of magnitude on the Richter Scale (remember that a magnitude 6 earthquake has a factor of 10 more energy than a magnitude 5 earthquake). These Denver earthquakes turned out to be due to disposing of pesticides down a 12,000 ft hole and greasing a horizontal fault. A former classmate of mine and then a colleague recommended pumping out the column of highly toxic pesticides to reduce the head (How would you like to be in the crew that did that?). It was controversial as some said this pumping might increase the earthquakes; however, he prevailed and was proven to be correct. For one experience I had with an earthquake in Japan, see: http://stopcontinentaldrift.blogspot.com/2009/11/you-are-so-lucky.html

While I have never been in a hurricane, I was involved in a false alarm that was scary enough because I was on unsecured scaffolding: http://stopcontinentaldrift.blogspot.com/2010/12/hurricane-warning-biographical.html

For an account of the Theology Of Natural Hazards, see: http://stopcontinentaldrift.blogspot.com/2010/05/theology-of-natural-hazards.html