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Earthquakes do not cause fires, but they do rattle things around a lot. So if you have a fireplace or a furnace, the earthquake can rattle the coals out of the fireplace, or knock down your wood-burning stove.

If you have natural gas or propane heating, the earthquake can break the gas pipe, allowing the gas to leak; if there's any kind of ignition source, this can cause a natural gas fire. In a severe earthquake, rubble can fall down and puncture a propane tank leading to a fire or explosion.

Unfortunately, a severe earthquake is also likely to rupture the underground water mains. So in addition to releasing the fire, it can also cripple the fire hydrants, which will make it very difficult for firemen to extinguish the fire.

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Is a fire a secondary effect of earthquakes?

Fire is often, but not always a secondary effect of earthquakes. If the earthquake strikes a populated area, it is likely to break natural gas pipes, and to cause other damage in human structures that will result in fires. In an unpopulated region, an earthquake may not cause a fire.


How does an earthquakes cause each of these types of damage?

Earthquakes cause direct damage when the seismic disturbance weakens and collapses buildings and other infrastructures not built to withstand the tremors. This often causes great loss of life. Other damage caused by earthquakes results from landslides, mudslides, avalanches, fires, soil liquefaction and tsunamis.


How can waste water cause earthquakes?

Earthquakes can be very messy. Buildings collapse, and there are often fires because controlled fires such as those of a stove become uncontrolled when there is too much structural damage. Things stored in sealed containers can leak out. Pipes break. All of this leads to a certain amount of pollution.


Does fire often occur after earthquakes and why?

yes because the friction of the tectonic plates produces heat leading to fires


How can earthquakes cause fire?

Earthquakes often break gas mains, causing flammable natural gas to fill damaged spaces. This easily catches fire from electrical sparks or automobiles. Power lines can cause fires due to damage by falling trees, buildings, and so on. Earthquakes destroy kitchens, throwing cooking fuel around in places where kerosene, butane, or alcohol are used for fuel. Earthquakes damage chimneys on homes and people unknowingly build fires which jump from damaged chimneys into attics and onto roofs. To make matters worse, an earthquake can damage the water mains that supply the fire hydrants that are needed put out the fires. The Great Fire of San Francisco (1906) was the result of an earthquake.


How is fire an earthquake hazard?

Earthquakes often cause gaslines to burst and electricity cables to fall. These (and the usual dropped candles, damaged heaters and simple arson) can result in fires that will cause massive further damage to any stricken area if they are not controlled e.g. parts of the city after the San Francisco Earthquake of 1906.


Do volcanic eruptions cause earthquakes?

Not usually. Although earthquakes often occur before a volcanic eruption, they are not the cause. The earthquakes are the result of magma (molten rock) moving underground leading up to an eruption. A few volcanic eruptions are thought to have been triggered or initiated by earthquakes, but this is not the typical case.


How does an earthquake cause each of these types of damage?

Earthquakes cause direct damage when the seismic disturbance weakens and collapses buildings and other infrastructures not built to withstand the tremors. This often causes great loss of life. Other damage caused by earthquakes results from landslides, mudslides, avalanches, fires, soil liquefaction and tsunamis.


What is the number one cause of forest fires?

There are two main causes of forest fires. Firstly is human carelessness as people fail to extinguish camp fires properly or are careless with matches and cigarettes. The second cause is often due to lightning strikes in forested areas.


What is the main cause of forests?

There are two main causes of forest fires. Firstly is human carelessness as people fail to extinguish camp fires properly or are careless with matches and cigarettes. The second cause is often due to lightning strikes in forested areas.


Where do earthquakes occur in the United States for kids?

Earthquakes occur on the west side of the United states of America. The state of California is often hit by earthquakes. This is because there is a fault line cause by the tectonic plates on the western coast of America.


Do earthquakes cause volcanoes to explode?

In most cases, no. However, there is evidence that, on a few occasions, earthquakes appear to have triggered eruptions, most likely by disturbing the magma chamber beneath the volcano. Earthquakes often precede a volcanic eruption, be these are not the cause of the eruption, but are rather a result of the movement of magma that leads to an eruption.