Could NYC Be Hit With A Quake

That's what the New York Daily News wants to know.

According to John Armbruster, a seismologist at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, New York has been hit by a quake before, and is likely to be hit again.

Armbruster says New York is susceptible to one quake a century of around a 5.0 magnitude, while Lynn Skyes believes it that the area could be hit with a 6.0 magnitude quake, and perhaps even a 7.0.

Skyes, who is a lead author of a recent study by seismologists at the Lamont-Doherty, says the area could be hit with a 6.0 quake every 670 years, and a 7.0 once every 3,400 years.

The last time the New York City area was hit with an earthquake was 1884, and prior to that, 1737. Both of them were 5.2 magnitude in nature.

"The problem here comes from many subtle faults," explained Skyes after the study was published. "We now see there is earthquake activity on them. Each one is small, but when you add them up, they are probably more dangerous than we thought."

"While uncommon, the earthquake hazard of the New York City metropolitan area has been assessed as moderate," the New York City Area Consortium for Earthquake Loss Mitigation writes on its website. "Considering population density and the condition of the region's infrastructure and building stock, it is clear that even a moderate earthquake would have considerable consequences in terms of public safety and economic impact."

Armbruster says a 5.0-magnitude earthquake today could be very costly, and cause the loss of human life. "I would expect some people to be killed," he notes. "Enough chimneys, facades on buildings would fall and someone would be underneath."

"Will there be one in my lifetime or your lifetime? I don't know. But this is the longest period we've gone without one."

Are you taking any extra preventions or precautions in light of the Japanese earthquake? Let us know.