An Earthquake History: Finding Faults in Virginia

The of dollars in damages occur in the United States Virginia Department of Emergency Management due to natural hazards.1 While geological hazards (VDEM) is currently managing hazard mitigation like earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions projects related to the earthquake that are funded account for only 10 percent of the monetary losses by the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. [...] the aftershock sequence helped to reveal the loca- To the southwest, the Giles County Seismic Zone tion of a previously undiscovered fault and may (GCSZ) extends through the New River Val- suggest that there are other potentially active ley, while the Eastern Tennessee Seismic Zone faults within the area.27 (ETSZ) envelopes the southwestern tip of Vir- Not only did the 2011 earthquake cause ginia. [...] “Prior to the careful Because earthquake prediction is not currently seismic monitor- possible, the continued development of regional ing following the and local seismic hazard maps29 and the improve- 2011 earthquake, Source: Photo by Mark Carter, the U. [...] Thorough monitoring the Division of Geology and Mineral Resources and analysis of future seismic events will allow us (DGMR) is participating in a project funded to build a more comprehensive earthquake history through FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Pro- of Virginia and help reveal the intricate network gram and managed by the Virginia Department of faults beneath our feet. [...] The views expressed are those of the author and not the official position of the Cooper Center or the University.