Scientists warn 1,000-foot ‘mega-tsunami’ could wipe part of America off the map
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Warning America could face 1000ft ‘mega-tsunami’
- A study warns of a potential 1,000-foot-tall "mega tsunami" that could devastate parts of America if a major earthquake hits the Cascadia subduction zone within the next 50 years.
- Alaska, Hawaii, and the West Coast are most at risk due to the Cascadia subduction zone, a fault line stretching from Northern Vancouver Island to Cape Mendocino, California.
- The Virginia Tech geoscientists' study estimates a 15 per cent chance of a magnitude 8.0 earthquake hitting the region in the next 50 years, potentially sinking coastal land by up to 6.5 feet and impacting cities like Seattle and Portland.
- Mega-tsunamis, characterized by extreme wave heights, differ from ordinary tsunamis and climate-driven events because they would occur rapidly, "within minutes," leaving no time for adaptation.
- The most severe effects are expected in southern Washington, northern Oregon, and northern California, with Alaska and Hawaii also vulnerable due to their seismic and volcanic profiles; the last major quake in the Cascadia subduction zone was in 1700.