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The crack -

The crack was first noticed on March 18, 2018, following heavy rainfall in the Great Rift Valley region of Kenya. Until then, the crack was covered with volcanic ash and therefore remained hidden from view.

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Region -

The low-lying Great Rift Valley is a region where tectonic plates split or move away from one another. And this is no surprise.

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East African Rift System -

The Great Rift Valley is part of the East African Rift System, a large rift that stretches for 4,000 miles (6,400 km) and is 30–40 miles (48–64 km) wide. The rift extends through multiple countries.

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How it happened -

The massive fissure is caused by a strong movement deep inside Earth. This movement resulted in deep, visible cracks appearing in Narok County, Kenya.

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Damaged road -

Signs of damage were first identified on Mai Mahiu-Narok road. According to local reports, the crack was 50 ft (15 m) deep and over 65 ft (20 m) wide.

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Relocation -

According to the Kenyan newspaper the Daily Nation, some families who live near the crack have started to move. Local resident Mary Wambui, 72, feared that staying there was a risk not worth taking.

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Local report -

Wambui recalled her experience; she was having dinner with her family when the ground started to split open and divided her house in two!

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Traumatic experience -

According to Reuters, another local resident, Eliud Njoroge Mbugua, also said that the ground split open inside his house.

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More cracks -

Following weeks of heavy rain, flooding, and tremors, additional cracks began to appear in the city's main road, Reuters reported.

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Feeling helpless -

Mbugua from the city of Mai Mahiu recalled how his wife shouted and asked the neighbors for help carrying their belongings when they first saw the cracks appear in their home.

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Homeless -

The house became so unstable due to the cracks that in the following days it had to be demolished.

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Volcanic ash -

Geologist David Adede said in an interview that the fissure had previously been filled with volcanic ash. Heavy rains then washed the ash away and exposed the cracks.

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History -

In his interview with the Daily Nation, the geologist added that tectonic and volcanic activity were nothing new in the Great Rift Valley.

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"Zone of weakness" -

According to Adede, the crack may have been tectonically inactive in recent times, but deep movements in the Earth turned the area into a "zone of weakness" stretching upwards to the Earth's surface.

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What are "zones of weakness"? -

Zones of weakness are essentially fault lines and fissures that are usually filled with volcanic ash. In the case of this specific fissure, the ash is likely to have come from Mount Longonot.

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Plate tectonics -

Plate tectonics is the theory that the Earth's crust is divided into various plates. These plates then move around on top of the mantle (an inner layer of hot rock), which surrounds the Earth's core.

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Fix -

NTV Kenya reported that the crack that had split the main road had been fixed. The fissure was filled in with a mixture of stones and concrete, which made the road usable again.

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Temporary solution -

Repair works conducted by the Kenya National Highways Authority were, of course, welcomed, but unfortunately the solution is likely to be temporary.

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Temporary solution -

This is because of how unpredictable the Earth's crust at the Suswa volcano can be. The Suswa volcano is also located in the Great Rift Valley.

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Prediction -

Researcher Lucía Pérez-Díaz, from the University of London, predicts that the crack will eventually split Africa in two.

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Prediction -

Pérez-Díaz says that the division into two continents will occur over the next tens of millions of years.

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Great Rift Valley -

The Great Rift Valley in East Africa extends from north to south between the Gulf of Aden, near Somalia, and Zimbabwe. The region is covered in volcanic rock.

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The split -

Pérez-Díaz believes that the northern part of the region could be the first to split apart.

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East and west plates -

According to Pérez-Díaz's theory, the crack, which appeared in Kenya, will split the African plate into two parts: the Somali plate to the east, and the Nubia plate to the west.

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Horizontal forces -

Pérez-Díaz also points out that the lithosphere gets stretched because it's subjected to horizontal forces. As this happens, it becomes progressively thinner, until a rupture occurs and a resulting fissure opens.

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A new ocean? -

Fissures and cracks are the early stages of a continental split, according to the researcher. Should this happen fully, a new ocean will be created.

Sources: (Reuters) (Daily Nation) (NTV Kenya) (The Conversation) (Britannica) 

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