Experts issued a warning about a massive 8.0-magnitude earthquake that could strike parts of the US in the next 50 years — the first in over 300 years. The possible waves created could reach 1,000-foot, threatening to wash away entire communities.
The warnings of a “mega tsunami” striking US regions have been made by Virginia Tech and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The earthquake could occur along the Cascadia subduction zone — a 600-mile convergent plate boundary that extends from northern California to southern British Columbia.
Alaska, Hawaii, and the West Coast all said to be at risk due to their proximity to unstable volcanoes, landslide-prone areas, and earthquake zones, Mail Online reports.
Further, the study suggests that it could cause coastal land to sink up to 6.5 feet.
“The expansion of the coastal floodplain following a Cascadia subduction zone earthquake has not been previously quantified, and the impacts to land use could significantly increase the timeline to recovery,” Tina Dura, lead author of the study and assistant professor in Virginia Tech’s Department of Geosciences, said in a statement.
During the last mega-wave event that affected these areas in 1700, the land sank, and dead trees that form “ghost forests” along the Pacific Northwest coast stand as silent witnesses to the catastrophe.
According to the US Geological Survey, one of the biggest earthquakes they have a record of is the Great Alaska Earthquake that occurred in 1964. It was with a magnitude of 9.2.
If such a destructive quake hit today, the prognosis are that “14,350 residents, 22,500 structures, and 777 miles of roadway would fall within the post-earthquake floodplain,” according to Dura.
“Preparing for these compound hazards can minimise long-term damage, ensure resilient communities, and protect critical coastal ecosystems from permanent degradation. Our findings aim to support decision-makers and coastal residents in the Cascadia Subduction Zone—and globally—as they brace for the combined challenges of seismic activity and climate-driven changes,” the research continued.
The predictions are that by the year 2100, sea levels will rise by another three feet, which will further increase the risk of tsunami damage to US regions.
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