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What Causes Earthquakes

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Rasheedat Arulogun
Professor Ann Frazier
English 81/ 1999
04/17/2012

What Causes Earthquakes

It takes an earthquake to remind us that we walk on the crust of an unfinished planet. “Charles Kuralt” Earthquakes as the name implies are among the earth’s natural disasters. Earthquakes are mother nature. Earthquakes are the trembling or shaking caused by sudden release of energy which usually associated with faulting or breaking on rocks. The tectonic plates are always moving. The moving causes the earthquakes and the earthquakes causes disasters. According to my research, l discovered that there are four types of earthquakes and their causes. First, the explosion earthquakes are man-made earthquakes and occur due to nuclear or chemical explosions. Collapse earthquakes are minor earthquakes that are caused by the collapse of undermined areas like caves and mines. Also, the sudden eruption of volcanoes can cause earthquakes. These occur when lava under the earth’s crust is under pressure and as a result of the pressure the lava is thrown out causing earthquakes. Furthermore, the most common causes of earthquakes are the tectonic plates. These plates are always moving, but they get stuck at their edges due to friction. When these plates move, they grind against each other. The motion of these tectonic plates is what causes earthquakes. Examples would be the earthquakes that happened in Haiti in 2010 and in Japan in 2011. The consequences of earthquakes are many. Earthquakes destroy buildings, roads and other structures. People died or become injured as a result of earthquakes. Houses are destroyed causing homelessness to the survivors. Transportation and communications may be disrupted. Earthquake causes fire that can spread due to gas-pipe explosions. Fire can destroy farmland thereby causing food shortage. In conclusion, earthquakes are most

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