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Canadian Island's Historic Hot Springs Dry Up After Earthquake

Posted by timothy on from the don't-keep-that-all-bottled-up-inside-you dept.

theshowmecanuck writes with this snippet from Canada's National Post: "Days after the remote B.C. archipelago of Haida Gwaii emerged virtually unscathed from Canada's second-strongest earthquake, locals discovered that the shifting earth had mysteriously switched off a centuries-old hot spring considered sacred by the Haida. ... A Parks Canada inspection party set out to investigate and stepped ashore to find that the island's three main hot spring pools, which once bubbled with water as warm as 77 Celsius, were bone dry. "Not even a small puddle," said Mr. Gladstone. Surrounding rocks, once warm to the touch, were cold." The earthquake measured 7.7 on the Richter scale."

22 of 97 comments (clear)

  1. Not the first time this happens... by mfarah · · Score: 4, Informative

    I live in Chile, one of the most earthquake-prone countries. Near my city there used to be a rather popular hot spring pools place *in the Andes Mountains* (not in a close-by valley), called "Baños Morales" ("Morales' [Thermal] Baths"). An earthquake in the '50s shifted plates and the hot springs completely dried up. The place still exists, but it's been abandoned.

    --
    "Trust me - I know what I'm doing."
    - Sledge Hammer
    1. Re:Not the first time this happens... by Charliemopps · · Score: 3

      I dunno, ask the east and gulf coast of the united states. Our government even pays people to rebuild every year. How dumb is that?

    2. Re:Not the first time this happens... by circletimessquare · · Score: 2

      or the banks of the mississippi or red river or west coast earthquake zones and brush fire areas near the rockies and desert southwest, etc., etc.

      or anywhere really that people live in communities and want to rebuild and expect their government that they pay taxes to to help

      i know, what a crazy concept

      --
      intellectual property law is philosophically incoherent. it is your moral duty to ignore it or sabotage it
    3. Re:Not the first time this happens... by shugah · · Score: 2

      I used to live in Pacifica California - approximately 200 yards from the San Andreas fault. When people from the gulf or Atlantic coasts asked me how I could live so close to a fault line my answer was always "at least there is no earthquake season".

      --
      If you aren't part of the solution, then there is good money to be made prolonging the problem
    4. Re:Not the first time this happens... by ewieling · · Score: 5, Funny

      "At least I know where my faults are"

      --
      I really shouldn't have used someone else's email address for this account.
    5. Re:Not the first time this happens... by Chrisq · · Score: 2

      And the midwest (tornados), and the west coast (earthquakes), and the Great Lakes area (floods), and the southwest (drought)....

      Sounds like God has got it in for you.

    6. Re:Not the first time this happens... by Macrat · · Score: 3, Funny

      Not sure about the US but Ontario doesn't allow building new buildings in the flood plain around the great lakes (or anywhere for that matter).

      In the US, flood plains are called "trailer parks."

    7. Re:Not the first time this happens... by Anachragnome · · Score: 4, Interesting

      "I used to live in Pacifica California..."

      Just south of there, at Rancho Del Oso (a portion of Big Basin State Park), there is a spring that a pioneering family built their homestead around. That spring almost completely stopped flowing after the Loma Prieta earthquake, while further down the coast near the epicenter in the Forest of Nisene Marks some long dry springs started flowing again.

      If you cut the flow in one place, it will flow somewhere else--or build up pressure until something blows.

      I wonder if there are new hot springs somewhere in Haida Gwaii.

    8. Re:Not the first time this happens... by khallow · · Score: 2

      Some sorts of disasters are far more predictable and frequent than others. Flooding is particularly notorious.

      I don't have a problem with people living in bad areas. I just have a problem paying for their lifestyle.

    9. Re:Not the first time this happens... by JMJimmy · · Score: 2

      Really? I thought trailer parks were called Tornado Catchers

  2. not surprising by v1 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    was going to happen eventually. Springs of any sort (hot or otherwise) are a bit of a fluke, it just takes nature awhile to correct them. Water's not supposed to flow uphill ;)

    Hot springs are going to be forming in volcanic active areas anyway, and those are going to be messing up the plates in their area, making earthquakes (even if only small ones) more common. So hot springs themselves should be considered very temporary by their very nature and design. A lot more temporary than say, a cold spring. We have a few of those here in Iowa, and I don't see an earthquake busting their pipes anytime soon out here.

    --
    I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
    1. Re:not surprising by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      Hot springs are not a case of 'water flowing uphill'. Water under high pressure is heated due to a raised geothermal gradient (maybe due to magmatic intrustion or other volcanic processes). This heat increases the pressure further until the rock above fractures and cracks propagate upward to the surface. Then you're in business for a hot spring that can be continuously fed by the way the water table is setup, especially if there is an aquifer nearby. Earthquakes cause shifts in the water table and probably drained the water source for the hot spring.

      Cold springs aren't any more permanent, just governed by a different set of circumstances. In Iowa, an earthquake probably won't cause the eventual death of the cold springs. More likely, a massive flooding event will load the water table differently and the spring distribution will change.

  3. Haida Pool Service by Chemisor · · Score: 4, Funny

    You should always call a professional to service your pool to avoid natural disasters. Why, only last week God tried to snake the drains on the sacred Haida hot springs, causing a 7.7 magnitude earthquake and completely draining the pools. Don't let this happen to you! Call Haida Pool Service to get the job done right! Proudly serving limbo and all 9 circles since 6000 BC.

  4. This is the Raven's Retribution by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    "The warriors poured brown salt into the sea from giant canoes, hoping to make chíin return.
    The raven , yáahl, was angered and dropped a stone into the water from hig in the sky.
    The ground shook like thunder and all the gifts of Jáadaa Gántl were taken away."

    1. Re:This is the Raven's Retribution by Ashenkase · · Score: 2

      Wish I had mod points, you would get them all. Visited the springs on a Zodiac tour back in 2005. Southern Haida Gwaii is a magical place. By the time we got to the springs we were chilled, we took a dip, had a nice lunch at the Watchman's house and then had a nap in the tall grass. On the way back to the drop-in we had an encounter with a breaching whale. Will always remember that day.

  5. Re:Quick, who can we blame? by Lieutenant_Dan · · Score: 2

    This is in Canada. So it's typical we would blame the Federal Conservatives, Harper, and his oil-pleasing cronies.

    Personally I blame the various unions and the inefficient healthcare sector with their monumental waste.

    --
    Wearing pants should always be optional.
  6. Obviously by Progman3K · · Score: 3, Funny

    God is angry at Stephen Harper

    --
    I don't know the meaning of the word 'don't' - J
    1. Re:Obviously by ArcadeMan · · Score: 2

      God is angry at Stephen Harper.

      Just like all Canadians.

      --
      Get free satoshi (Bitcoin) and Dogecoins
  7. Re:Quick, who can we blame? by Phrogman · · Score: 3, Funny

    The thing is, if you blame Harper and the Conservatives for something - they are likely guilty of it :P

    --
    "The first time I got drunk, I got married. The second time I bought a chimpanzee, after that I stayed sober" Arian Seid
  8. And so ends the Mayan calendar by minstrelmike · · Score: 2

    Perhaps this is how the Mayan end of times starts ;-)

  9. Re:Fracking by CohibaVancouver · · Score: 2

    Ah, Usain Bolt. Quick tip - It's spelled "Usain," not "USain."

  10. What are the odds... by Type44Q · · Score: 2

    ...that heated water will find another path to the surface?