Earthquake Damage, Anchorage

The Good Friday Earthquake (also called the Great Alaska Earthquake) of Friday, March 27, 1964 (Good Friday, a Christian holy day associated with a historical earthquake^[1]), 5:36 P. Events 196 BC - Ptolemy V ascends to the throne of Egypt. 1309 - Pope Clement V excommunicates Year 1964 ( MCMLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the 1964 Gregorian calendar. Good Friday, also called Holy Friday or Great Friday, is the Friday preceding Easter Sunday ("Pascha" A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth M. AST (03:36 3/27 UTC) had a moment magnitude of 9. TalkMoment magnitude scale#Real world examples please.--> The moment magnitude scale 2 and was an 8. 4 on the Richter scale. The Richter magnitude scale, or more correctly local magnitude M L scale assigns a single number to quantify the amount of seismic energy released It was the most powerful recorded earthquake in U.S. and North American history, and the third most powerful ever measured by seismograph. An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth 's crust that creates Seismic waves Earthquakes are recorded with a Seismometer The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Seismometers (from Greek Seism - "the shakes" - and Metro - "I measure" are instruments that measure and record motions of the ground including 131 deaths were attributed to the earthquake. The epicenter of the earthquake was 61°03′N 147°29′W / 61.05, -147.48, 12. The epicenter or epicentre is the point on the Earth 's surface that is directly above the Hypocenter or focus the point where an Earthquake 4 mi (20 km) north of Prince William Sound, 78 miles (125 km) east of Anchorage and 40 miles (64 km) west of Valdez. Prince William Sound is a sound of the Gulf of Alaska on the south coast of the U Valdez ( is a city in Valdez-Cordova Census Area in the US state of Alaska. The rupture occurred at a depth of approximately 15. 5 mi (25km) and its duration was approximately 4 minutes. The powerful earthquake also caused some parts of Alaska to experience Earthquake liquefaction, causing much damage to property and leading to landslides. Soil liquefaction describes the behavior of loose saturated unconsolidated soils i

The earthquake

Earthquake epicenter

At 5:36 p. m. Alaska Standard Time (3:36 a. The Alaska Time Zone observes Standard time by subtracting nine hours from Coordinated Universal Time ( UTC-9) m. March 27, 1964 UTC), just as people were traveling home, a fault between the Pacific and North American plates ruptured near College Fjord in Prince William Sound. Events 196 BC - Ptolemy V ascends to the throne of Egypt. 1309 - Pope Clement V excommunicates Year 1964 ( MCMLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the 1964 Gregorian calendar. In Geology a fault, or fault line, is a planar rock fracture which shows evidence of relative movement The Pacific Plate is an oceanic Tectonic plate beneath the Pacific Ocean. The North American Plate is a Tectonic plate covering most of North America, Greenland and part of Siberia. Plate tectonics (from Greek τέκτων tektōn "builder" or "mason" describes the large scale motions of Earth 's Lithosphere College Fjord is a Fjord located in the northern sector of Prince William Sound in the U The earthquake lasted for three to five minutes in most areas. Ocean floor shifts created large tsunamis (up to 70 feet (20 meters) in height), which resulted in many of the deaths and much of the property damage. A tsunami ((tsuːˈnɑːmi is a series of waves created when Large rockslides were also created which resulted in great property damage. Vertical displacement of up to 38 feet (11. In Tectonics, vertical displacement is the shifting of land in a vertical direction resulting in a permanent change in elevation 5 m) occurred, affecting an area of 100,000 miles² (250,000 km²) within Alaska. Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent

Type of fault

The Alaska Earthquake was a Subduction Zone Earthquake. In Geology, a subduction zone is an area on Earth where two tectonic plates meet and move towards one another with one sliding underneath the other (Megathrust earthquake)

Death toll, damage and casualties

131 people were killed as a result of the earthquake: 9 in the earthquake itself, 106 from tsunamis in Alaska, and 16 from tsunamis in Oregon and California. A megathrust earthquake occurs at Subduction zones (destructive plate boundaries where one Tectonic plate is forced under (subducts another Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent Oregon ( is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Property damage was estimated at over $300 million ($1. 8 billion in 2007 U. S. dollars).

Anchorage area

Most property damage occurred in Anchorage, 75 mi (120 km) northwest of the epicenter. The epicenter or epicentre is the point on the Earth 's surface that is directly above the Hypocenter or focus the point where an Earthquake Nine people were killed, the only deaths directly attributed to the earthquake. Anchorage was not hit by tsunamis, but downtown Anchorage was heavily damaged, and parts of the city built on clay or near bluffs, most notably the Turnagain Heights neighborhood, suffered landslide damage. Downtown is a term primarily used in North America to refer to a city's core usually in a geographical commercial and community sense Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained Minerals which show plasticity through a variable range of Water content, and A landslide is a geological phenomenon which includes a wide range of ground movement such as rock falls deep failure of slopes and shallow debris flows which can occur Most other areas of the city were only moderately damaged.

The small coastal towns of Girdwood and Portage, located approximately 40 mi (60 km) southeast of Anchorage on Turnagain Arm, were destroyed. Girdwood is an unincorporated year-round Ski resort community within the Municipality of Anchorage in the U Cook Inlet stretches from the Gulf of Alaska to Anchorage in south-central Alaska. Girdwood was later relocated a few miles inland, while Portage, which subsided below the high-water level, was abandoned entirely. In Geology, Engineering, and Surveying, subsidence is the motion of a surface (usually the Earth's surface as it shifts downward relative to

Elsewhere in Alaska

Most towns in the Prince William Sound, Kenai Peninsula, and Kodiak Island areas, especially the major ports, such as Seward and Kodiak, were heavily hit by a combination of seismic damage, tsunamis, subsidence, and/or fire. Prince William Sound is a sound of the Gulf of Alaska on the south coast of the U Kenai1jpg|thumb|Kenai Peninsula Outer Coast]]The Kenai Peninsula is a large Peninsula jutting from the southern coast of Alaska in the United States. Kodiak Island is a large island on the south coast of the US state of Alaska, separated from the Alaska mainland by the Shelikof Strait. Seward is a city in Kenai Peninsula Borough in the US state of Alaska. Kodiak (Кадьяк is one of 6 communities and the main city on Kodiak Island in Kodiak Island Borough in the U Fire is the heat and light energy released during a Chemical reaction, in particular a combustion reaction. Valdez was not totally destroyed as is commonly thought and was inhabited for the next three years; the town was later moved to more solid ground 7 km (4 mi) west of its original site. Valdez ( is a city in Valdez-Cordova Census Area in the US state of Alaska. Several of the smaller, low-lying Alaska Native villages in the area (such as Chenega and Afognak) were mostly or totally destroyed. Alaska Natives are Indigenous peoples of the Americas native to the state of Alaska within the United States. Chenega is a Census-designated place (CDP on Evans Island in the Valdez-Cordova Census Area in the U Afognak (əˈfɒɡnæk also Ag’waneq) was an Alutiiq village on the island of Afognak in Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska, The earthquake also caused the ballistic missile detection radar of Clear Air Force Station to go offline for six minutes, the only unscheduled interruption in its operational history. Clear Air Force Station is a United States Air Force Station located 5 miles (8 km south of Anderson, Alaska, USA, northeast of The Million Dollar Bridge also collapsed.

Canada

A 4. 5 ft (1. 4 m) wave reached Prince Rupert, British Columbia, just south of the Alaska Panhandle, about 3. Prince Rupert is a port city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The Alaska Panhandle, sometimes referred to as Southeast Alaska, is the southeastern portion of the U 3 hours after the quake. The tsunami then reached Tofino, on the exposed west coast of Vancouver Island, and travelled up a fjord to hit Port Alberni twice, damaging 375 homes and washing away 55 others. Tofino is a Village of about 1650 residents on the west coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia Vancouver Island is a large Island in British Columbia, Canada, one of several North American regions named after George Vancouver, the British A fjord or fiord (fjɔːd|fiːɔːd or fiːɔːd is a long narrow Inlet with steep sides created in a valley carved by glacial activity. Port Alberni is a city located in the province of British Columbia in Canada. The towns of Hot Springs Cove, Zeballos, and Amai also saw damage. Zeballos (pop 189 is a Village located on the northwest coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. The damage in British Columbia was estimated at $10 million Canadian ($65 million in 2006 Canadian dollars, or $56 million in 2006 U. S. dollars).

Elsewhere

12 people were killed by the tsunami in Crescent City, California, while four children were killed on the Oregon Coast at Beverly Beach State Park. Crescent City is the only incorporated city of Del Norte County California and serves as the County seat. Beverly Beach State Park is a State park in the US state of Oregon located five miles north of Newport. ^[2] Other towns along the U. S. Pacific Northwest and Hawaii were damaged. The Pacific Northwest is a region in the northwest of North America (the term refers to the land not the ocean The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the Minor damage to boats reached as far south as Los Angeles. Los Angeles (lɑˈsændʒələs los ˈaŋxeles in Spanish) is the largest City in the state of California and the American West

Since the entire Earth vibrated as a result of the quake, minor effects were felt worldwide: several fishing boats were sunk in Louisiana and water sloshed in wells in South Africa. EARTH was a short-lived Japanese vocal trio which released 6 singles and 1 album between 2000 and 2001 The State of Louisiana ( or, État de Louisiane, pronounced) is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa ^[3]

Aftershocks

Over 10,000 aftershocks were recorded following the main shock. In the first day alone, eleven aftershocks were recorded with a magnitude greater than 6. 0. Nine more occurred over the next three weeks. It was not until eighteen months later that the aftershocks were no longer a danger.

Gallery

Dramatic sea level change in Valdez after the earthquake

Tire impaled with a piece of wood, due to the force of the tsunami

Seward waterfront, mid-1964

Turnagain Heights landslide - exposed earth appears dark against the snow

See also

• List of earthquakes

Notes

External links

• USGS report on the earthquake
• U.S. Geological Survey Photo Library -- earthquake photos
• The Great Alaskan Earthquake & Tsunamis of 1964 -- NOAA report
• The Effects of the March 28, 1964 Alaska Tsunami in British Columbia, Canada
• Eyewitness Accounts