My hometown of Reading, PA, located 50 miles west of Philadelphia, has not really experienced any true “disaster” so to speak. The World map of natural hazards however, indicates longer term impacts such as increases in heavy rain. In June of 2006, we had a significant flooding event that caused the Schuylkill River to swell from its banks and flood six blocks into the city of Reading, as well as onto Highway 422 westbound. Climate projections indicate that rain may become more frequent during the summer, which puts the area at risk for more major flooding events. The potential for severe weather, including hail and tornadoes, as denoted by the map, is on the lower part of the spectrum, as are wildfires. However, on 22 May 2014, there was a significant thunderstorm that produced baseball sized hail that fell through the city of Reading. The chances of that happening again are rare. Overall, my hometown is in a safe area from extreme weather and/or natural disasters.

One disaster I chose was a reported earthquake in Colombia, South America. The magnitude was a 3.0 at a depth of 14.91 miles (mi). The potential impact from that earthquake is/was minor, as the ground barely shook given the depth of the quake. However, my hometown is at risk for earthquakes, but not on a frequent scale. In March of 2006, my hometown experienced a magnitude 6.1 that last four seconds. The epicenter was four miles from my house (it sounded like a bomb exploded). The Reading, PA, area is right along the Ramapo fault line, one of the oldest fault lines in the nation. My home area is much more developed than it was 10 years ago when the magnitude 6.1 occurred. The bridge network across the Reading area is one of thee worst in the nation, of which two major thoroughfares were closed due to chunks of concrete falling off the bridges into the Schuylkill. Another earthquake, even if it is a moderate magnitude, may cause some of the bridges in the area to collapse – it is of great concern but the area is very, very poor, so funding to repair the bridges is not applicable. I think if new bridges are built, or the old ones are repaired to modern day engineering code, it will reduce the risk of structural failure of the bridges from an event such as an earthquake. It’s an interesting, and quite scary thought to think about, but it is indeed a real issue.