8 Oregon has volcanoes and earthquakes

Volcanoes

Volcanoes are a kind of mountain. They often have large holes at the top. Sometimes they explode. There can be hot liquid rock and smoke. This can be dangerous for people near the volcano.

Scientists say there are 18 volcanoes in the United States with a very high threat. This means they might be dangerous soon. Four of them are in Oregon. They are:

• Crater Lake
• Mount Hood
• Newberry Volcano
• Three Sisters

Will they explode soon? Nobody knows. However, scientists found another problem. They found new cracks in Mount Hood. These cracks are called “fault lines.” They might make a large earthquake.

Earthquakes

Oregon, Washington, and California will have a big earthquake, say scientists. They don’t know when. Sooner or later, it will be “the big one,” they say.

The ground is going to shake strongly. The immense earthquake will make a tsunami. A tsunami is a very large wave of water. It will reach land in 15 minutes. There will be a lot of damage.

However, each state has different kinds of land. Some areas are more dangerous than other areas. For example, there is more danger for the coast between Portland and Seattle.

The last large earthquake was in 1700. No one knows when it is going to happen again. It can be this year or more than 100 years from now.

^{-This information is from stories first published in ESOL News Oregon July-October 2018.}