Jojo vs Earthquakes

Ok, let's begin our journey here.

If you were born in a country - Belgium - where Earthquakes happen as often as a chicken smoke a cigar, then you are really blessed. No risk, no fear, and a lot of beer.

But if, like me, you decide to leave that country and reside in a country - the Philippines - which happen to lay just over the Pacific Ring of Fire, the most seismically active region on the planet, then you are either (multiple choice) :

1. Nuts
2. Out of your mind
3. Retired
4. Smocking weed
5. Hiding from the dragon in your bedroom (really you should stop smocking weed)
6. In Love

Personally, it was a mix of 1 and 6

In any case, the Pacific Ring of Fire is THE place to be if you are an earthquake junkie. If you are a normal person, please refer to the multiple choice above.

Courtesy of : www.nature.nps.gov

Well, I had my first taste of ground shaking in 2012 with the Eastern Samar Earthquake.

Maps of Tectonic Plates

On the 31 of August of that year, the whole family was gathered in the house, a usual evening. During the discussion we felt slowly, but surely, the motion of the ground. It is weird, really weird. And yet, we are in Davao City in the South of Mindanao, as for Eastern Samar it is way up the map.

The fact is, it was a Strong Earthquake on the Richter Scale. The last number was 7.9M, strong enough to make Davao City shake as well. And I must admit that not being able to stand correctly on your feet is a strange feeling... However, their was not much incident, just a good shake.

The quake itself happened at sea near the Philippine Trench which is a Subduction Zone on Convergent Boundaries between the Philippine Plate and the Eurasian Plate. Those Plates are just two pieces of a planetary puzzle of many plates which divide Earth's Crust.

So, there I was with my first taste of what it feels like to have the ground moving under your feet. Since then I had another few of course but not that strong, but that first one led me to realize that it could be a good idea to get more interested in preparing for those things, especially coming from Belgium where Earthquakes happen as often as a chicken smoke a cigar.

By the way, all the terms in orange will be explained in future posts, which is quite one of the purpose of this blog, beside preparation for disaster :-)

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