Earthquake, Hazards, and Disaster News

The MCEER Information Service is a comprehensive source for information on earthquake engineering, hazards mitigation, disaster preparedness, and related topics. IS posts new content frequently, covering a wide range of news and research topics.

As an added service, IS reviews published materials, maintains a database for conferences & continuing education opportunities, a portal to noteworthy Web sites, and other topics of interest.

Detailed Coverage of Recent Disasters

Iowa – Midwest Flood News & Statistics

The latest Iowa – Midwest flood news, statistics, images, videos, and maps are posted here daily.

China Earthquake, Sichuan Province

Review the latest Sichuan earthquake news, images, videos, and statistics.

Cyclone Nargis Devastates Myanmar (Burma)

Review the latest Cyclone Nargis news, images, videos, and statistics.

Current News

India Flood Victims Riot Over Lack of Food

Food riots erupted Wednesday in eastern India, where more than two million people have been forced from their homes and about 250,000 houses destroyed in what officials said were the worst floods in 50 years …International Herald Tribune

Infrastructure Bottlenecks Limit U.S. Grain Exports

Across the country, wheat and corn are piled in towering mounds exposed to wind, rain and rats, waiting for a rail car to haul them to market… Seattle Times

Flood Devastation in India

Over a million people have been affected by floods in three districts of the northern Indian state of Bihar, officials say …BBC

Study Finds New Earthquake Dangers for NYC

An analysis of recent earthquake activity around New York City has found that many small faults that were believed to be inactive could contribute to a major, disastrous earthquake… New York Times

Making Sure Hospitals Can Stand up to Quakes

The good news for Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla is that its deadline for retrofitting or replacing one building to meet California's earthquake rules has been pushed back from 2013 to 2030… San Diego Union-Tribune

Fay Hits Florida for Fourth Time

Tropical Storm Fay, which has left a trail of death and destruction in its wake, has entered the record books by hitting Florida for a fourth time… BBC

Amendment to Eurocode 5 Manual

An error has been found in one of the equations in the Manual for the design of timber building structures to Eurocode 5 … IStructE

NASA Data Helps Pinpoint Impacted Populations after Disasters

When two catastrophic natural disasters struck within days of each other in May 2008, disaster relief, humanitarian aid, and health officials, as well as members of the news media tapped into a unique set of NASA data products describing the location of the exposed populations… Science Daily

Low Water Levels on Mississippi River Cause Concerns

Low water levels on the Mississippi River are causing problems just weeks after one of the worst floods ever on Old Man River. Twice this week, tows pushing barges on the Mississippi north of St. Louis have become stuck in dirt and sand in the navigation channel… L.A. Times

Minor Damage from 5.4 Quake Shows California has Learned its Lessons

The earthquake that rattled Southern California on Tuesday might have caused devastation if it had taken place in some parts of the world, but relatively strict building codes ensured that most of the region's infrastructure – homes, schools, freeways and rail systems – rolled with the magnitude 5.4 punch… L.A. Times

Magnitude 5.4 – Greater Los Angeles Area, California

The greater Los Angeles area earthquake of 29 July 2008, 11:42 PDT (18:42 UTC), was centered in the hills south of Diamond Bar and Chino Hills. An early analysis of the earthquake's focal mechanism implies that the shock originated as the result of oblique-reverse faulting … USGS

Research & Professional News

New Research Indicates Higher Earthquake Risk for NYC & Surrounding Regions

Seismologists from Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Observatory recently released a report, published by Seismological Society of America, which identified an intersection of two active seismic zones within two miles of the Indian Point nuclear power facility. The research also suggests the greater probability of a significant seismic event due to the combined effects of multiple smaller regional faults.

ASCE Engineers View Wreckage Of China Quake

A team of engineers under the auspices of ASCE and the Technical Council on Lifeline Earthquake Engineering were able to get into the region for a four-day survey of the damage to lifeline infrastructure. The team came back with an extensive report on what they saw and felt – including a large aftershock. Learn about and view photos showing the extent of damage to bridges, roads, power, telecommunications and more.

Sichuan, China Earthquake Research Project – EERI & GEER

A team of earthquake researchers, sponsored by the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI) and the Geo-Engineering Earthquake Reconnaissance (GEER) Association, will join Chinese colleagues to investigate and document scientific and engineering effects of the devastating Sichuan earthquake (magnitude 7.9) that occurred in Wenchuan County, China, on May 12, 2008.