BOSTON, Feb. 16, 2012 – Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide released a new report titled, “Understanding Earthquake Risk in Japan Following the Tohoku-Oki Earthquake of March 11, 2011.” The M9.0 Tohoku earthquake changed the seismic risk landscape of Japan. In response, AIR scientists have conducted a detailed analysis of whether and where the stresses relieved by the Tohoku earthquake have been transferred to neighboring faults. Although damage from this event is most closely associated with the massive tsunami-which in places reached a height of more than 30 meters and demolished…
Read MoreTag: earthquake insurance
Haiti and Dominican Republic to enter into a time of seismic activity, according to U.S. Geological Survey
Though insurers around the world are holding out hope that 2012 will not be as disastrous as 2011, a new study from the U.S. Geological Survey suggests that that may not be the case. The agency has been investigating earthquakes in the isles of Hispaniola, home to Haiti and the Dominican Republic. In 2010, Haiti was rocked by a strong 7.0-magnitude quake that cost the lives of more than 300,000 people are decimated entire communities throughout the nation. Researchers say that this may not be the last big earthquake that…
Read MoreJapan at risk of more strong quakes in the next four years, say seismologists
Japan is still working to recover from a massive magnitude-9.0 earthquake that rocked the nation last year. The quake generated a tsunami that claimed 20,000 lives and spurred a nuclear crisis that continues to this day. While it will certainly not be the last quake Japan experiences in its lifetime, seismologists from the University of Tokyo say that the next quake will come sooner than expected. According to researchers, there is a 70% chance that the nation will be hit by a powerful quake of magnitude-7.0 or higher within four…
Read MoreOhio earthquakes linked to controversial fracking procedures, claim regulators
Ohio has experienced an outbreak of earthquakes in recent months. Many of these quakes are relatively small – the strongest registering 5.4. While earthquakes are not decidedly uncommon in the state, the frequency at which they are occurring has some state officials and insurance companies worried. They are concerned because the quakes may be linked to the controversial “fracking” operations that are based throughout Ohio. Fracking is the process of drilling into the earth in order to harvest oil that is stored in shale bedrock. Earlier this month, state officials…
Read MoreOhio earthquakes may be linked to fracking – Department of Natural Resources to investigate
A string of earthquakes have led Ohio officials to put a halt to controversial “fracking” operations that are scattered throughout the state. Fracking is the process of drilling deep into the earth to extract gas from shale, a fine grained sedimentary rock. The wells drilled into the earth are often filled with brine water in order to draw the gas to the surface. Some claim that the pressure from these water injections into the well is the cause behind the earthquakes. Most of the quakes rocking the state have been…
Read More