How would a major earthquake impact New York City?
Manhattan island in particular features unique seismic hazards, says Megan Linkin with Swiss Re Corporate Solutions.
It’s a common misconception that the Eastern Seaboard of the United States is shielded from the threat of earthquakes due to the region’s distance from tectonic plates.
But that conventional thinking was challenged recently when a magnitude 4.8 tremor rattled New Jersey and New York. It happened on the morning of Fri., April 5, 2024. The USGS says the quake’s epicenter was about 45 miles from New York City, where people reported shaking furniture and floors. Rumbling was reportedly felt as far north as Maine and as far south as Virginia.
Although damage from this event was minimal, for Megan Linkin, Senior Parametric Nat Cat Structurer at Swiss Re Corporate Solutions, this temblor was a reminder of how imperative it is for the East Coast to prepare for the possibility of a major earthquake. In addition to the fact that the more densely populated an area, the higher the chance of major destruction from an earthquake, Manhattan island in particular features unique seismic hazards.
The New York City waterfront was “built up using material dredged up from the ocean, and that soil is extraordinarily sandy,” Linkin says in this week’s episode of the Insurance Speak podcast. During an earthquake, sandy soil is especially vulnerable to liquefaction.
“When you have soil that is prone to liquefaction,” Linkin says, “anything built on it is going to disappear.”
Linkin also speaks about the history of earthquakes taking place in unexpected locations, the need to plan for this unusual but extraordinary risk, and the available insurance solutions.
You can listen to the full discussion above, or subscribe to Insurance Speak on Spotify, Apple Music or Libsyn.
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