How Africa
A geological phenomenon is dividing the African continent in two, at the level of the Great Rift Valley which crosses the countries of South-East Africa. Scientists have been waiting for years. But recent events suggest that things are accelerating.
The torrential rains that batter since March 16, the Kenya , are of a rare violence. They have already killed at least 16 people in the floods and landslides they caused. They have also caused major road collapses in the country. The busy May Mahiu-Narok road , located in the south of the country, a few kilometers from the capital Nairobi , has been the most damaged. Under the eyes of stunned motorists, an impressive rift 15 m deep and 20 m wide was created swallowing all the muddy water. Around this road, the fertile plains and arable lands have suddenly appeared cracks too.
Kenya has suffered terrible torrential rains in recent days (Photo: Tony Karumba / AFP)
Did the rains expose the terrestrial cracks caused by intense tectonic activity in this region of the world? (Photo: Tony Karumba / AFP)
This region is located in the Great Rift Valley , which crosses the continent from the Horn of Africa to Mozambique. The area has been considerably weakened for years. It has suffered many earthquakes and landslides due to a powerful geological activity long known to international geologists.
A new continent in 50 million years
” Scientists have known for many years that the African tectonic plate separates from the Somali plate at the level of the Great Rift Valley, a geological phenomenon that extends from the Red Sea to the Zambezi River over more than 6,000 km. at 60 km wide. “ Says David Adede, a geologist quoted by the British newspaper, The Independent .
Four countries in the Horn of Africa – Somalia , half of Ethiopia , Kenya and Tanzania – are expected to separate from Africa to form a new continent in around 50 million years . A new ocean will appear and separate the two shores. In any case, this is what geologists have always expected.
Four countries in the Horn of Africa – Somalia, half of Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania – are expected to separate from Africa to form a new continent in around 50 million years, geologists have predicted . (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
“The zero moment of opening an ocean in 2005”
In September 2005, a giant fissure had already opened up in the earth’s crust north of Afar , a desert area some 100 kilometers south of the Ethiopian-Eritrean border . It stretches for about 60 km long, between 2 and 12 km deep and its spacing is about 5 meters . It is estimated that about 2 km³ of basaltic magma injected into this fissure.
This gigantic crack occurred at the same time as a series of earthquakes and an eruption on the side of Dabbahu , a volcano that rises to 1,442 m . Since then, a dozen other smaller cracks have opened in the south. ” This opening episode of autumn 2005 probably marks the zero moment of the opening of an ocean in this part of the world. “ Said Eric Jacques, deputy director of the Institute of Earth Physics in Paris (IPGP), interviewed by Le Figaro in 2009.
According to the physicist, ” In a million ‘ years, the Afar depression will be open 30 additional km “ , but recognizes that ” It is not yet known all the plumbing. “ Underground of this region whose political instability does not help geologists to work extensively on site. Hence the difficulty to project and warn local populations of a possible danger.
In 2005, a giant fissure had already opened up in the earth’s crust north of Afar, a desert area some 100 km south of the Ethiopian-Eritrean border. (Photo: University of Auckland)
“Living here is courting death”
” In the recent past, the Rift Valley may have been tectonically inactive. “ Yet says David Adede in The Independent . ” But there could be deep movements in the earth’s crust that have given rise to areas of weakness that extend to the surface. These areas of weakness form lines of faults and cracks that are normally filled with volcanic ash, probably from nearby Mount Longonot. The rains only aggravated the situation by washing the ashes, which eventually exposed the cracks . “
Regularly locals move, according to the Kenya Daily Nation newspaper . Evidence collected reports sudden cracks in the ground that destroy homes. ” Staying here is courting death, “ says 72-year-old Mary Wambui, who recounts that on Monday, she was dining with the rest of her family when the earth suddenly cracked under their feet, cutting their house in two …
Local people fear that a natural disaster will occur without warning. (Photo: Tony Karumba / AFP)
Certainly, the process should still take a few tens of millions of years before a new ocean divides the continent into two parts. But, locally, the fear that the phenomenon is accelerating, is very lively. Additional geological studies must be conducted on site to verify and attempt to map the gaps that pose serious security problems: roads, railway lines, bridges, buildings can obviously be found on one of them. Regularly, repairs are undertaken. The ravines are filled with rocks and concrete. ” But it’s like putting a bandage on a wooden leg. “Are the fatalistic inhabitants who fear that the natural disaster will occur sooner than expected.
