Experts Warn of a Major Midwest Earthquake, But It’s Nothing New
There are new warnings about the possibility of a major earthquake on the New Madrid Fault, but when you look at the details you'll realize it's really nothing new that we don't already know.
The Associated Press shared this "new" report about experts being concerned about a major quake in the central U.S. Is this based on new data? Nope. The fact is that experts met this week for the 3rd annual earthquake preparedness summit to discuss the possibilities.
There is one small bit of information that is updated if not new. They warn "experts believe there is a 7-10% chance of a magnitude 7.0 or greater earthquake in the next 50 years within the New Madrid zone, and a 25-40% chance of a smaller but still potentially devastating magnitude 6.0 quake". We've heard before of the maybe 10% chance we'll see a major quake similar to what rocked the New Madrid in 1811 and 1812, but a 1 in 4 chance of a 6.0 earthquake is not something I've heard before.
It is also true that scientists have run simulations of what would happen if a massive 7.7 quake hit the New Madrid Fault and the results aren't pretty. It shows that the "experts" do believe a shake this major is possible.
I would encourage you to read the full story and not just the headline of the Associated Press report. There's really no new need for alarm although earthquake preparedness in our part of America is always a good idea. The New Madrid will ruin our day again...someday.