Major earthquake in Alaska

Or when the New Madrid goes, which will devastate Memphis and St. Louis.

 

anybody check on the pipeline?

 

Russia just got THAT much closer to Sarah Palin's house.

 

I'm guessing - with the temps below freezing now for a while, they'll just dump gravel and level things out. No way can you repave, and then have the road come apart during the spring thaw.

 

Wow, no kidding. That has impact -- and award-winning -- written all over it.

 

Amazing.

Collapsed Alaska highway ramp reopened four days after quake

 

Remember the 5.9 in Virginia?

 

Wonder what became of all those cars that were caught undamaged in the middle of all that jumble. They can’t just call in a crane and lift them out, can they?

 

I doubt it’s the epicenter. That part of the road looks like a manmade “fill”.

Highway and railroad construction consists of “cuts” and “fills” to make the roadbed more level with less gradient changes. Cuts are sort of self explanatory - you cut through hillsides to eliminate a lot of the hills.

Fills are the opposite - filling in small valleys, with culverts underneath.

Anyway, the main point is that fills are manmade. Dirt and rock (often excavated from nearby cuts) are piled into areas too short and not cost-worthy enough for bridges.

During severe earthquakes, manmade ground tends to be the most likely to “liquefy” and disintegrate.

Another good example of liquefication is the San Fran World Series earthquake (1989 IIRC). Some of the most damaged areas were, ironically, built upon landfills created from the debris of the 1905 SF Earthquake.

Anyway, MH, I’m still amazed at the story and photos from those Colorado roads that washed out a couple of years ago. Did they get opened back up yet?

Regards,
VB