For those of you who heard about it, at 2:13 pm [note: that was the time my grandfather clock stopped, officially it was reported to have been 2:11pm] on 15 December 2009, there was an light-medium-strength earthquake (4.2 Richter) centered under the town of Spina, about 4km (2.5 mi) due south of Tenuta Collicello as the crow flies. There was minor damage in Spina with some uncertainty if there is any structural damage in the town center. We felt (and heard) the movement at Tenuta Collicello, but there was no damage, only about two seconds of “rock and roll.” Apparently there was an after-shock of 2.3 Richter, but we did not feel that one at all. Our Internet connection continued to function during and after the quake, and the landline and portable telephone systems were still online, but after about five minutes, they were virtually unusable because they were totally overloaded with calls. Again, “for the record,” the phone systems were again overloaded around 7:30-8:30 pm as people discovered on the evening TV news that the quake had occurred, and tried to call friends and relatives in the area.

Earthquakes are relatively rare in this area. In the five years we have been on site here, this is only the second we have felt. In any case, the house is built to modern earthquake-resistant standards, and should withstand a much stronger quake, should one occur. Finally (also “for the record”), there are many more earthquakes in California than in Umbria! Conclusion: you should leave California and move to Umbria!

Actually, we’re trying to get back to Switzerland, but we need to sell the house here first. The three things that struck me about the earthquake are (1) how absolutely helpless you are to do anything about it, (2) the sensation that I had been put into one of these cups that is used for scrambling dice, and shaken up like that, even though I wasn’t even moved out of my chair, and (3) our two dogs and three cats seem to have been as surprised as I was – I have always heard that the animals can sense that something is coming, but that apparently was not true in this case. I’m sure I’m not the first to have these impressions, and certainly won’t be the last, either, but report them I can (and now have! ).

We now have heard that there were about 400 cases of damage reported to the local authorities in Spina; as far as I can figure out, that’s more than two per residence (population is 573)! There were also reports of some potential damage in the villages Sant`Apollinare (pop. 61, about 2km west of Spina), Pieve Caina (pop. 58, about 2,5km north-north-west of Spina) and our village San Biagio della Valle (pop. 449, about 4km north-north-east of Spina). Reportedly, 90 people were kept out of their homes by the authorities due to potential problems of structural damage and gas leaks, two people were hospitalised, and five others were treated for injuries and released.

My wife was eating lunch in a restaurant in Marsciano, about 10 km south of Spina, as the bird flies, and she didn’t feel anything, although others in town did (including another woman in the restaurant), some even running into the streets (which this other woman did, without explanation).

Needless to say, I hope that is the last ‘quake we will experience here – stronger or weaker!

Jimmy Craig
for
Sue & Craig Websites

Mother Nature Strikes Back