The email sent will contain a link to this article, the article title, and an article excerpt (if available). For security reasons, your IP address will also be included in the sent email.
http://motherjones.com/politics/2011/03/fema-earthquake-new-madrid
A rogue seismologist says we're spending millions to prepare for an imaginary natural disaster. Should we listen?
By Tim Murphy | Wed Mar. 23, 2011
Following last week's nuclear near- meltdown in Japan, the focus in Washington has quickly shifted to the federal government's own emergency-response policies. Given the Federal Emergency Management Agency's botched response to Hurricane Katrina, concerns remain about the nation's readiness in the event of a catastrophic natural disaster. As the National Journal's Marc Ambinder put it , if a magnitude 9.0 earthquake hit the Midwest, "Would the United States be better prepared to respond than Japan?"
Such a disaster is a serious possibility—at least in eyes of FEMA. Three years ago, the agency stated that a massive quake in the New Madrid Seismic Zone, located in the Mississippi Valley near Memphis, "is likely to constitute the highest economic losses due to a natural disaster in the United States." The hazard posed by the NMSZ is greater, in other words, than a Category 5 hurricane hitting New Orleans or a flare-up on California's San Andreas fault. And FEMA has devoted significant resources to preparing for the next "big one" in the Mississippi Valley—as have other agencies, based on its recommendations.
Return to Article