Southern California
Struck by Aftershocks!
A colour photo depicts a resident inspecting a fissure
aftter a 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck northeast of Los Angeles.
“Aftershocks
from Southern California's largest earthquake in 20 years, rumbled
beneath the Mojave Desert, as authorities tallied damage in the
sparsely populated region.
The colour photo of a man standing a-centre of the vast desert land
captured my attention as well as his.
“The
strongest aftershock so far, hit shortly after 4 a.m. and awakening
people all the way to the Pacific coast. Multiple injuries and two
house fires were reported in a town of 28,000. Emergency crews dealt
with small vegetation fires...gas leaks...reports of cracked roads.
Kern County Fire Chief David Witt said 15 patients were moved from
the Ridgecrest Regional Hospital as a precaution.
California Highway Patrol Lt. John Williams said officials
found cracks on several roads in the county.
“In
a Ridgecrest liquor store, the aisles were filled with broken wine
and liquor bottles...knocked down boxes...and other groceries strewn
on the floor. Flames were seen shooting out of one home in the
community. Lucy Jones, a seismologist, said the earthquake was the
strongest since a 7.1 quake struck another area of the Mojave Desert
on October 16, 1999.
Jones said the 6.4 quake was preceded by a magnitude 4.2 quake
about a half-hour earlier. She said also that there was little
likelihood
the quake raised the risk of a quake on the mighty San Andreas Fault.
“The
B.C. quakes and California's quakes are unconnected and didn't occur
in the same fault zone.”
(the foregoing are excerpts by John Antczak and Olga R. Rodrigez ~
reported to The Associated Press)
(After working several assignments in California's tech areas,
and with the threats of fires...earthquakes...tsunamis, my son
rejected further offers.)
No Tsunami or Damage
Reported After Multiple Temors off B.C.
From Vancouver, Beth Leighton reported to The Canadian Press:
“A
series of earthquakes off British Columbia's coast on Friday may be
linked to a stronger quake in the same area earlier this week, experts
say. Alison Bird, a seismologist with the Pacific Geoscience Centre
near Victoria, said they are working to determine if the latest
tremors are aftershocks from Wednesday's 6.2 magnitude quake in the
same region. I'm wondering if this might be more of a swarm
sequence than
a main shock,” she said, “A swarm sequence is an outbreak of
seismic activity, which is common off the British Columibia coast. It
often has a sudden flurry of activity where you get 100 earthquakes
within a week-and-a-half period,” she said. “ They're a bit of a
nuisance.”
“The
quakes occurred under the Pacific Ocean between Haida Gwaii and the
northern tip of Vancouver Island. Bird said she had calculated 2
larger tremors ~ one occurring at 5:58 a.
m, Pacific time Friday , with a preliminary magnitude of 5.1 and a
second one 4 minutes later measuring 4.7. None set off a tsunami ~
and no damage or injuries were reported.”
Tour de France:
Five Race-Defining Stages
With seven mountain stages and five summit finishes, including three
above 2,000 metres,
this
year's Tour
de France is
the highest in the history of the race.
The
route for the 106th
edition of the 3-week marque event offers only a few moments of
respite. The first mountain test will come after just 5 days of
racing ~ and contenders won't be able to hide their tactics for long.
Also, there is only 54 kilometres against the clock, split between
one team time trial and an individual time trial ~ meaning a pure
climber has a good chance to triumph in Paris on July 28.
Here are 5 key stages that could define the race dynamics:
Stage
6:
Mulhouseto
Las Planche Des Belles Filles:
160.5 km July 1l. Introduced to the Tour in 2012, the Planche
des Belles Filles ascent
immediatelybecame a classic. Set up in the Vosges mountains, it is
steep, tortuous and brutal ~ featuring a 20 per cent gradient at the
top. The final ascent comes after several other climbs including the
Markstein,
the
Ballon
d'SAlsace
and the Col
de Chevreres meaning
the pack should be reduced to a small bunch of general classification
contenders in the last few km.
Stage
13:
Pau,
individual
time trial, 27.2 km, July 19. The only individual time trial of this
year's Tour is taking place on a rolling terrain and features an
uphill stretch of road with a 7% gradient. A good chance for overall
contenders to gain valuable time on the pure climbers before the race
ventures into the high mountains. The winner of this stage will
receive a special collector's shirt, making the 100th
anniversary of the 'yellow jersey'.
Stage
15:
Limoux
to
Foix
Prat d'Albis, 185
km, July 21. Coming right after Stage 14 to the famed Col
du Tournalet ~
the first of 3 finishes over 2,000 metres this year ~ the last
Pyrenean
trek
running close to the ancient Cathar castles, is a grueling and
daunting ride totaling more than 39 km of climbing. The final
ascent of the day, leading to the finish at Prat
d'Albis is
an average of 6.9 per cent.
The
Tour's Queen
Stage.
Stage
19:
Saint-Jean-De-Maurienne
to
Tignes,
126.5
km July 26. At 2,779 metres, the Iseran
mountain in the Alps, is a Tour
de France giant
~ and one of the highest road passes in Europe where thin air makes
things harder for the peloton. Tour riders will tackle it for the
8th
time in the history of the race ~ from the tougher south side, before
a final 7.4-kilometre uphill effort to Tignes
ski resort.
The last kilometre is rather flat and seems ideal for a sprint
between the best climbers.
Stage
20:
Albertville
to
Val
Thorens, 130
km, July 27. In their bid to maintain suspense, Tour
organizers
have set up an ideal stage for a final-showdown in the Alps.
On the eve of the final processional stage to Paris,
yellow jersey contenders will be taking on each other
on a royal battleground ~ featuring 3 climbs and technical downhills.
Capping
the highest Tour
in race history,
the
final climb to the ski station of Val
Thorens, at
an altitude of 2,365 metres
is more than 33 km at an average gradient of 5.5 per cent.
Good Luck with that!
***Rider
Mike Woods Gives the Tour a Maple Leaf Flavour***
Canadian
Mike Woods remembers growing up watching the Tour
de Fance.
Now
the 32-year-old from Ottawa, wants to give viewers back home
something to cheer about. “When watching the Tour, I'd get
super-excited when I'd see a Canadian in the field,” he stated.
Let's All Watch ~ and Cheer for Mike!!!
Writer: Merle Baird-Kerr...written July 7, 2019
To send comments: mbairdkerr@bell.net
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