The Chilean Earthquake of Bio-Bio February 27, 2010
Georgie Callahan
Geology 1010
William Case
December 14, 2011
On Saturday, February 27, 2010 at 06:34 UTC an 8.8 Magnitude earthquake
rocks offshore Bio-Bio Chile in South America. The earthquake was 60 miles NW
of Chillan, Chile, 65 miles NNE of Concepcion, Chile, 70 WSW of Talca, Chile
and 210 miles SW of Santiago, Chile.
The loss of life was at least numbered at 523 people. There were 24
missing, around 12,000 injured, 800,000 displaced. The reports came in with at
least 370,000 homes, 4,013 schools, 79 hospitals and 4,200 boats destroyed or
damaged by the earthquake and tsunami in the Valparaiso-Concepcion-Temuco
area. There were at least 1.8 million people affected in Araucania, Bio-Bio,
Maule, O’Higgins, Region Metropolitana and Valparaiso. It has been estimated
that the economic damage was at 30 billion US dollars.
The Chilean Earthquake of Bio-Bio February 27, 2010
The earthquake disrupted the electricity, telecommunications, water
supplies, and airport transportation. The tsunami damaged or destroyed many
buildings and roads throughout the region. There was even damage to some boats
and a dock in the San Diego, California area. The effects were felt by bordering
countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay. See below.
The Chilean Earthquake of Bio-Bio February 27, 2010
Tectonic Information:
The earthquake was generated at the gently sloping fault that conveys the
Nazca plate eastward and downward beneath the South American plate. The two
plates are converging at 7 meters per century. The fault rupture, largely offshore,
exceeded 100 km in width and extended nearly 500 km parallel to the coast. The
rupture began deep beneath the coast and spread westward, northward, and
southward. As it spread, the fault slip generated earthquake shaking. The fault slip
also warped the ocean floor, setting off the tsunami along the fault rupture area.
(USGS earthquake.usgs.gov website). Subduction zones, such as the South
American arc are geologically complex and generate numerous earthquakes from a
variety of tectonic processes that cause deformation of the western edge of South
America.
In this article, it states since the middle of the 16th century, there is a
comprehensive written history of other large damaging earthquakes throughout the
region. Charles Darwin and Robert FitzRoy provided written observations and
comments about the Concepcion earthquake of 1835.
Aftershocks:
In the time period since the earthquake’s origin, February 27, 2010 to April
26, 2010 the USGS NEIC has located 304 aftershocks of magnitude 5.0 or greater.
The Chilean Earthquake of Bio-Bio February 27, 2010
Of these aftershocks 21 of these have magnitudes of 6.0 or greater. See below the
aftershock map.
Subduction Zone
The Chilean Earthquake of Bio-Bio February 27, 2010
Damage & Reconstruction: Photos (geerassociation.org)
The Chilean Earthquake of Bio-Bio February 27, 2010
There are many variables that go into the severity of the damage. Many of
the structures in Chile lack sturdy confinement beam joints. The quality of the
concrete is sub-standard.
The Chilean Earthquake of Bio-Bio February 27, 2010
Because the earthquake occurred in the early morning hour of 3.34 am many
people were not on the streets and avoided the falling debris.
A “state of catastrophe” was declared in 6 of Chile’s 15 regions. The major
industries of the region which include, fishing, shipping, mining, refineries,
forestry, winemaking and agriculture were disrupted. Luckily schools and
universities were closed during the earthquake. None the less, damage was
sustained to the school system and many of the hospitals. The positive direction
from this natural disaster is that the future construction will follow stricter
guidelines for seismic retro fit reconstruction and changes in land use and
The Chilean Earthquake of Bio-Bio February 27, 2010
regulations. This will definitely reduce the amount of death and damage due to
earthquakes.
The Chilean Earthquake of Bio-Bio February 27, 2010
My Reflection
As a social work major I can see the correlation between geology and social
events including natural disasters. Our biological and environmental situation
affects our very being.
Learning about and thinking critically about our universe and the Scientific
Method opens up a dialog for many opinions about scientific proof and how it
affects society currently. It was interesting to learn about the past and how people
who were “ahead of their time” were ridiculed and doubted with their theories that
since, have been proven correct.
Learning about earthquakes, volcanoes, minerals, rocks, glaciers and mass
wasting puts things into perspective and gives us a responsibility to become
civically engaged and to take on a personal responsibility to respect our planet
Earth and its resources.
This class has opened my eyes to the future and has given me a respect for
the past. I chose to do a report on the Earthquake that happened in February of
2010 in Off Shore Bio-Bio Chile. The damage and loss of life was great. The
thing that struck me the hardest was that we live in a world where natural disasters
happen and it is people who suffer the consequences of the event. This is where
my major in social work comes in. The humanitarian effort and reconstruction of
both buildings and the human spirit converge into one.
The Chilean Earthquake of Bio-Bio February 27, 2010