UK scientists warn that London is on shaky ground
Earthquakes and the violent tremors and aftershocks that follow
, kill and injure thousands of people every year across the globe. In the last couple of years massive loss of life has been endured in Haiti while areas of New Zealand and Italy have also been struck with violent seismic tremors.For the citizens of Haiti home insurance was probably not a big factor in recovering from the devastation that followed, but certainly citizens in New Zealand and Italy will have been greatly comforted knowing that their household insurance policies were in place.
It now seems that Britons and especially those in the capital may at some time in the future be claiming on insurance after an earthquake. At least that could be the case if the scientists from the British Geological Society (BGS) have their calculations right.
The boffins from the BGS have been investigating past tremors on the British Isles and have come to the conclusion that the likelihood of a "shake" affecting London is more liable to happen than was once thought. According to the scientists the UK gets a quake of around magnitude 5 or bigger once every century, the biggest ever recorded being one of 6.1 magnitude, just off the coast of East Yorkshire in 1931. The quake was big enough to cause domestic damage down the coast of England at the time.
In the 16th century an earthquake in the Dover Straits actually killed two people in London as the clay based soils of the capital rattled and shook with violent tremors. The scientists believe that London's massive new skyscraper buildings would withstand all but the most intense tremors but point out that older buildings could well be affected by a medium sized earthquake.
The contents in modern buildings of course would mean possibly millions of pounds worth of damage. Domestic homes usually have contents insurance of around 40,000-50,000 which covers such items as plasma TV's, ovens, dining tables, sofas and beds so one can imagine the cost of one area of London being affected.
Dr Roger Musson a member of the BGS speaking of the earthquake in 1580 said "The same earthquake happening tomorrow will impact far more people than was the case in the 16th Century.
"The size of London in terms of population is about 50 times more today than it was then. So if two people were killed in London in 1580, you can imagine for yourself what sort of scaling up that could mean for a contemporary earthquake of the same size"
UK scientists warn that London is on shaky ground
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