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| -Signs, Portents, and the Weather- |
| Quake lifts Solomons Island out of the sea |
| 2007-04-08 |
| RANONGGA, Solomon Islands: The seismic jolt that unleashed the deadly Solomons tsunami this week lifted an entire island metres out of the sea, destroying some of the world's most pristine coral reefs. In an instant, the grinding of the Earth's tectonic plates in the 8.0 magnitude earthquake Monday forced the island of Ranongga up three metres (10 foot). Submerged reefs that once attracted scuba divers from around the globe lie exposed and dying after the quake raised the mountainous landmass, which is 32-kilometres (20-miles) long and 8-kilometres (5-miles) wide. Corals that used to form an underwater wonderland of iridescent blues, greens and reds now bleach under the sun, transforming into a barren moonscape surrounding the island. The stench of rotting fish and other marine life stranded on the reefs when the seas receded is overwhelming and the once vibrant coral is dry and crunches underfoot. Dazed villagers stand on the shoreline, still coming to terms with the cataclysmic shift that changed the geography of their island forever, pushing the shoreline out to sea by up to 70 metres. Aid agencies have yet to reach Ranongga after the quake and tsunami that killed at least 34 people in the Pacific archipelago but a reporter and photographer on a chartered boat witnessed the destruction first hand. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #13 It *is* Fred's handiwork, Shipman. Spot on, as usual. ;-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-04-08 20:39 |
| #12 Seen, not seed. PIMF..... |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2007-04-08 15:14 |
| #11 So we sign Kyoto, buy Al Gorlioni's Global Warming packet, go green and everything is balanced. Then Yellowstone blows, followed an asteroid falling on Mecca, giant earthquake at Qom, and giant louds of Locusts the world has never seed this side of the Old Testament. Where did we go wrong, when we all were so sincere? Things are not static on this old planet. It is not a national park. We humans and other life forms are living on the edge, sitting on a thin crust with a thin blanket of oxygen to sustain us. Welcome to life on the edge. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2007-04-08 15:13 |
| #10 Tiny Shutling.... heh heh, Freds namer is fairly clever. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2007-04-08 10:50 |
| #9 Gaia: Why does she hate us? |
| Posted by: Excalibur 2007-04-08 09:53 |
| #8 Whoops! Lost my cookie for a moment, but now I've found it again. ;-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-04-08 04:43 |
| #7 the cataclysmic shift that changed the geography of their island forever Forever? With all the aftershocks from the seaquake that caused the tsunami, forever might not be all that long. I'd not build anything permanent on all that beautifully smelly new oceanfront property. |
| Posted by: Tiny Shuting7169 2007-04-08 04:37 |
| #6 On the bright side, pristine oceanfront property is newly available. Who says they're aren't making more land? |
| Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 2007-04-08 03:12 |
| #5 Anytime Gaia shrugs Her shoulders, we humans and our creations go sprawling. |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2007-04-08 01:47 |
| #4 OK, that solved that global warming problem |
| Posted by: Classer 2007-04-08 01:09 |
| #3 Ma Nature really has been rearranging the furniture lately in that room. She may even be considering remodeling some of her rooms, given her current mood. It's amazing, how in a room, moving a piece or two of furniture left, right, forward or backward can give the room a more balanced effect, thus furthering the entire "feel" of the room for more comfort. |
| Posted by: Sherry 2007-04-08 00:57 |
| #2 AP, why Bush, of course! |
| Posted by: FOTSGreg 2007-04-08 00:52 |
| #1 So who is going to take the blame for Ma Nature throwing a tectonic tantrum? |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2007-04-08 00:40 |