Earthquakes

Kota Vamshi
.
 Agenda

 Introduction
 Types
 Earthquake measuring devices
 Seismic zones of India
 Earthquakes in India
 Hazards and Impacts
 Risk Mitigation
 Events During an Earthquake
 Role of EMS

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Introduction: .

Plate Tectonics
Plate tectonics, theory dealing with
the dynamics of Earth’s outer shell—
the lithosphere—that
revolutionized Earth sciences by
providing a uniform context for
understanding mountain-building
processes, volcanoes, and earthquakes
as well as the evolution of Earth’s
surface and reconstructing its past
continents and oceans.

Some major tectonic plates are:

• African plate
• Antarctic plate
• Eurasian plate.
• Indo Australian plate.
• North American plate.
• Pacific plate.
• South American plate.
Introduction: Earthquake
An earthquake (quake, tremor or temblor) is the
shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a
sudden release of energy in
the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves.
Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those that
are so weak that they cannot be felt, to those violent
enough to propel objects and people into the air,
damage critical infrastructure, and wreak destruction
across entire cities.
The seismic activity of an area is the frequency,
type, and size of earthquakes experienced over a
particular time.
When the epicenter of a large earthquake is located
offshore, the seabed may be displaced sufficiently to
cause a tsunami. Earthquakes can also
trigger landslides.

Faults
 A fault is a planar
fracture or discontinuity in a
volume of rock across which
there has been significant
displacement as a result of
rock-mass movements.
Types of Faults
(Earthquake movements)
Reverse faults
A reverse fault is one in
which one side of the
fault, the hanging wall,
moves up and over the
other side, the foot
wall.
Normal faults Strike-slip faults
faults are inclined Strike-slip faults
fractures where the are vertical (or nearly
blocks have mostly vertical) fractures
shifted vertically. where the blocks have
mostly moved
horizontally.
What are Devices to Measure the
magnitude of earthquake?
Richter
• .
• .
The Richter scale is used to rate the magnitude of an earthquake,
that is the amount of energy released during an earthquake.
Magnitude
Scale

•• ..
 Seismometers
• .
• .

Seismographs
Seismograms
Seismographs are instruments used to record the
motion of the ground during an earthquake. 

A Seismogram is the recording of the ground

shaking at the specific location of the instrument.

A Seismometer is the internal part of the

seismograph, which may be a pendulum, or a mass
mounted on a spring; however, it is often used
•
•
.
.
synonymously with "seismograph".

Seismic zones of
India
. Zone 3.
Earthquake-prone regions of the country have
been identified on the basis of scientific inputs
related to seismicity, earthquakes that
occurred in the past and the tectonic setup of
the region. On the basis of these inputs, the
Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has grouped
the country into four seismic zones viz. zones
V, IV, III and II. Zone V being the highest and
Zone II being lowest
This region is liable to lower and is
classified as the Low Damage Risk
Zone. It is the zone with low
chances of having earthquakes.
This zone is classified as a Moderate
Damage Risk Zone. The IS code
assigns a zone factor of 0.16 for
 
This zone is called the High Damage
Risk Zone. The IS code assigns a
zone factor of 0.24 for Zone 4.
Zone 5 covers the areas with the
highest risk of suffering earthquakes.
It is referred to as the Very High
Damage Risk Zone.
 Some Fatal Earthquakes in India
Indian Ocean Earthquake, 2004 Great Bihar-Nepal Earthquake,
1934
•Magnitude: 9.1–9.3
•Magnitude: 8.7
•Epicenter: West coast of
Sumatra, Indonesia (3.316°N •Epicenter: South of Mount
95.854°E) Everest (27.55°N 87.09°E)

•Deaths: >283,106 (Includes •Deaths: > 30,000

deaths in Indonesia, Sri Lanka,
India, Thailand, Maldives, and
Somalia)

Kashmir Earthquake, 2005 Gujarat Earthquake,2001

•Magnitude: 7.6 •Magnitude: 7.7-
•Epicentre: Muzaffarabad, •Epicentre: Bhuj, Kutch,
Pakistan-administered Kashmir Gujarat (23.419°N 70.232°E)
(34.45°N 73.65°E)
•Deaths: 20,000
• Deaths: 130,000
 Hazards with an earthquake
Various hazards associated with an earthquake can be grouped
as:
Primary hazards: These are the effects, which occur
simultaneously along with the natural phenomenon of the
earthquake.
~Ground Shanking
~Fault rupture
~Tectonic deformities
Secondary hazards: These affects are those, which occur at the •
end or after the earthquake phenomenon.
~Soil liquefaction
~Land and Mud slides
~Submarine avalanches
~Snow avalanches
~Tsunamis
 Impacts due to Earthquake
Primary Impacts :
~Building and bridge collapse
~Rupture Of water and pipelines and Other utilities
~Changes in underground water sources
~Changes in courses of rivers
~Disappearance and/or creation of new islands.
Secondary Impacts :
~Death and damage due to collapse of including buildings.
~Fire and explosions
~Disease and epidemics
~Floods from dam failure
~Floods from tsunami.
 .

Earthquakes : Risk
. Mitigation
• Hazard resistant construction or
retrofitting of Buildings/ Houses
to reduce the vulnerability of the
structures
. • Proper land use planning to avoid
potentially high hazard zones.

.* • Community preparedness through

awareness generation, mutual
assistance, and adherence to a set
.* of Do's and Don'ts.
Role of Healthcare/Medicine(EMS) in
Earthquakes
Common Injuries for the victims of an Earthquake are:
• Lacerations
• Contusions
• Simple Fractures. etc.,.
EDs will experience an increase in patients with these
diagnoses like
• Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease(COPD),
• Cardiac arrest
• Myocardial Infarctions,
• Possibly childbirth. etc.,.
The second group includes those with conditions or issues more
unique to earthquakes, such as
• Crush injury
• The need to use ketamine,
• Indications for hypertonic saline treatment. etc.,.
 Conclusion
• An earthquake is a natural phenomenon. It is difficult to make accurate prediction about
the time, location and magnitude of an earthquake.
• The movement of tectonic plates due to the mantle leads to earthquakes. On according
based on few assumptions we divide the geographical area into Seismic zones and MSK
•
scale.
• One should be ready after knowing about the warning signs and move to safer places.
The highest authority should note about the hazards and impacts and be ready to
excavate the victims and calculate the disaster damage.
• Taking precautions can save one from the natural calamities. Community should try to
participate in the rescue programme and doesn't spread any kind of chaotic rumours.
• The responsible department should concentrate on the events before-during-after the
event.
• The role of medical services is the most important, it should include keen
• . assessment ,Face unique unexpected situation, they should try to understand, treat and
• . prevent the mental and physical state of patient .
References:
• Britannica
• Geological survey of India
• India today
• The Hindu
• David E. Hogan (Disaster Medicine)
• Textbook of Community Medicine
• NCERT Grade 11 Geography
• Natural Disasters (Deanna Romero)
Thank you