Yesterday your Danish correspondent experienced a "major" earthquake, one of the strongest that has ever been measured in Denmark. Our cottage shook and belched for a few seconds, and we wondered whether our washing mashine had finally fallen down (unlikely, as we were not using it, but when mother nature plays tricks you never know ...)
But dangerous? No, not nearly as much as our beloved neighbour, the North Sea.
For a more neutral, scientific account, visit this brilliant blog: Olelog.
Our cottage is situated in Nr Vorupør, due east of the epicentre.
And the blue-white space below? An absolutely sober and reliable weather report.
.jpg)
22 kommentarer:
Oh, no!!! Dorte, I hope that you and your family are well, and that there are no aftershocks! How frightening!
Margot: I should probably have made it clearer that earthquakes in Denmark are only remarkable because they are very rare, and very peaceful affairs.
The real dangers in our part of the world is the North Sea (and staying outdoors during a snowstorm).
so where is your cottage Dorte?
Kerrie, I have just added a map so you can see North Vorupør. The epicentre is c 50 km west of that.
You were lucky there was no tidal wave!
I have felt one earthquake back when I was in university. I was sitting on my roommate's waterbed and all of a sudden the whole thing was vibrating. Very different from when you move and it makes waves. Not something I want to feel again. Glad you are safe.
Wow!! You've really had some excitement!! Weather and natural disasters have always fascinated me.
I live in Arkansas which is in the southern US. Probably most people don't associate earthquakes with our area, but the New Madrid fault line runs near the northeast corner of the state and one of the largest earthquakes in the continental US took place there in the early 1800s. They say we're due another. I sure hope not!
Thanks for sharing this news and the related blog!
Kerrie: we don´t get tidal waves of that kind (or our earthquakes are just not strong enough - I don´t know much which is why I linked to my uncle´s excellent blog).
Heather: as soon as we knew what it was, it was quite fun. And most Danish houses are extremely well built (because of our many storms) so if people on Haiti could afford those, there would not be the same amount of casualties.
Kelly: that is like us. There is an old, rather peaceful fault that belches quietly now and then (if I have understood things correctly).
Living in earthquake country (California) and having actually survived one that killed two people on the other side of a wall from me, I'd say earthquakes are fun--until they aren't! Glad you and your fellow Danes have weathered this one well, Dorte. I would have liked to see your uncle's blog, but couldn't get in-- at least at present.
I'm glad to hear that your are all safe
Seana: so you are also in California? No, I know they are not fun there, and not in Haiti either. But when I had first written my post, I could see that my friends abroad worried about us which is why I made it clearer that we DO have rare earthquakes in Scandinavia, but they are very harmless. Two or three houses have tiny cracks after it, but that is it.
NB: the link to my uncle´s blog seems okay, but you could also go this way:
http://my.opera.com/nielsol/blog/
Jose: thank you. Are there earthquakes in Spain? - and are they dangerous, or just minor affairs like ours?
I was not online yesterday, Dorte, so have only just seen this. What a shock! I am so glad that it was a minor earthquake and that you are OK. I too am lucky enough to live in a place where earthquakes are very rare (England) (or at least, ones that you can sense) - we did have one a couple of years ago and it was a most strange sensation. So glad you are OK. Having suffered various natural disasters over the years, mainly wind-or flood-related, I only hope that the insurance will or would have paid out had your washing machine in fact fallen over. It is amazing what these companies can do with the fine print.
However, I am very grateful to live somewhere where (touch wood) large enviornmental disasters have not happened in my lifetime. I sympathise with those that live in more dangerous places.
Dorte, Spain has suffered several minor earthquakes, particularly in the southern province of Granada, but fortunately they are not severe.
One has to go back to 1755 when Lisboa was destroyed by an earthquake whose consequences were felt in some Spanish areas as well.
Jose: I thought so.
Maxine: I almost regret that I wrote about our tiny drama, because I really didn´t intend to scare any of my good friends all over the world!
So I am sorry if I have caused any of you anxiety, but Danish houses can easily stand up to most of nature´s tricks. It was an extraordinary, but not very dangerous experience.
OMG! So glad you are okay! There are some very, very old standing structures in western Denmark, so I'm sure most can stand up to a bit of shaking. Still! Wow.
Glad you're all right! Sounds like Danish houses are built to last. :) A good thing! Watch out for that North Sea, though.
Elizabeth
Mystery Writing is Murder
Beth and Elizabeth: thank you!
Yes, Danish houses are built to resist terrible storms and tons of snow so it takes a lot to shake them.
Yes, I'm in Northern California. The thing about earthquakes, even here, is that the vast majority of them are mild, so people don't actually think about them all the time, even though people living elsewhere associate the state with them. As Kelly said, the New Madrid fault in the U.S. Midwest is just as serious a faultline as the San Andreas, but people back there don't think about that one much either.
The fact is that it isn't really earthquakes that kill people--it's structures that kill people. Our downtown fell down because ironically it had been rebuilt after being destroyed in a fire at the beginnin of the last century. People were reluctant to use wood again, so they built it in brick, which seemed sensible at the time, but turned out not to be so great eighty years later. Old mortar just crumbles.
Seana: I am far from an expert on earthquakes, but I did know that most people die because their houses are not stable enough which is why I have stressed that it takes a major earthquake to destroy a typical Danish house. They are built to withstand a climate which is very different from that of California (and Haiti).
I live 100 km from your cottage, and i did not feel a movement at all. But then again: I was a sleep at the time, and I sound like a earthquake myself when sleeping :-o
Søren: oh, then I suppose it was you we heard? ;)
Send en kommentar