28 April 2015

The Earthquake Nepal Saw Coming

MATT SCHIAVENZA
APR 26, 2015

Hours after a major earthquake wreaked havoc across his country, Nepali Information Minister Minendra Rijal appeared at a news conference on Saturday to announce that schools would be closed for the next five days. "We never imagined we'd face such devastation," he said.

But for geologists, Saturday's disaster—which has claimed over 2,400 lives—was sadly predictable.

"Physically and geologically what happened is exactly what we thought would happen," James Jackson, head of the earth-sciences department at the University of Cambridge, told the Associated Press.The source of Nepal's beauty is whatmakes it vulnerable to earthquakes.

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