2007+Solomon+Islands+earthquake

On April, 2 2007, a magnitude 8.1 earthquake occured about 345 kilometers from the capitol of the Solomon Islands-Honiara(1.) A tsunami quickly ensued, causing waves ranging from two to ten meters (2.) The initial earthquake was followed by one mere minutes after. This earthquake measured 8.2 (4.) The tsunami that arose from those earthquakes devastated the Solomon Islands. More than thirty people died while others were rendered homeless. There is a population of about 100,000 in the Western and Choiseul provinces; the Ministry of Health and Medical services expects that upwards of 50,000 people have been affected by this disaster (5.) Gizo Island experienced the the most damage of all the islands. Its hospital was completely destroyed as well as many of its schools (5.) The earthquake that cause the tsunami occured on the Solomon Islands subduction zone. Three plates are subducted along this subduction zone: the Solomon Sea plate, the Woodlark plate and the Australian plate (2.) Subduction zones typically produce the highest magnitude earthquakes, as they occur on a convergent plate boundary. Convergent plate boundaries are places where two or more plates ram together-mountains are frequently formed on convergent plate boundaries. The Solomon Islands are located in the infamous "Ring of Fire" in the Pacific. The "Ring of Fire" is well-known for its volcanic and seismis activity (6.) Residents of the islands describe feeling four or five more earthquakes after the main shock. To survive until help arrives, survivors had to boil water to make it safe for consumption. Police handed out rice and toilet paper. Map of how the waves In Malakavar 3, around ninety percent of the houses were demolished due to propagated to the Solomon the repeated rush of the waves. Witnesses report seeing houses being swept Islands away while people were still in them (7.) Before the earthquake hit, residents say that they noticed the local animals acting strangely. Works Cited 1) [|http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov-NGDC] Natural Hazards Slide set 2)http://walrus.wr.usgs.gov/tsunami/solomon07/ 3)http://nctr.pmel.noaa.gov/sololmon20070401.html 4)http://environment.newscientist.com/article.dn11514-tenmetrehigh-tsunami-strikes-solomon-islands.html 5)http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/nndc/struts/results?EQ_0=3037&t=101650&s=9&d=100,91,95,93&nd=display 6)http://www.geotimes.org/apr07/article.html?id=WebExtra040207.html 7)http://www.smg.com.au/news/world/survivor-tells-of-shakeshake-terror/2007/2007/04/03/1175366205449.html