On 29 may 2008, a strong earthquake shook Iceland. The magnitude of the earthquake was between 6.1 and 6.3. The epicenter of the earthquake was between the towns of Hveragerði and Selfoss. The main earthquake was followed by several aftershocks. Between the years 2001 and 2008, this earthquake was the strongest one. The event was due to the North American plate and Eurasian plate moving away from each other. Iceland lies on the North American plate and Eurasian plate and because it lies on the boundary, Iceland frequently experiences earthquakes but it is uncommon for them to be very deadly.
Some residents were interviewed and they claimed that there were quite a lot of shaking, glass in the windows shook and everyone was very scared. Road had been closed due to the damage done by the earthquake. The earthquake also caused landslides. Rescue teams were sent out to help people, visit hospitals, schools and other sites. Fortunately, the earthquake affected towns that population were small hence only a small hand full of people suffered minor injuries. No one died in this earthquake. As there were possibilities of aftershocks, Authorities advised residents not to go back to their houses. Some built tents and others stood on the streets. Even the some patients in the hospital were asked to evacuate and stay outside.
I think that countries that are earthquake prone should not place hard or breakable object on high shelves. This is to prevent objects from dropping and hurting people during an earthquake. Houses in earthquake prone countries should also be made strong, stable and more earthquake resistance. People should also be educated on what to do when there is an earthquake and they must remember to remain calm. We cannot stop natural disasters but we can minimize the amount of damages caused by these natural disasters. Bibliography:
Fox news, http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,359963,00.html , extracted 30-05-2008
Fox news, http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,359963,00.html , extracted 30-05-2008
BBC, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7426369.stm , 29-05-2008
wikipedia : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geology_of_Iceland ,29-09-2009 & http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Iceland_earthquake ,10-12-2009
