by Michael Snyder, End Of The American Dream:

The nightmarish earthquake swarm that has been rattling Puerto Rico since last month continues to make headlines all over the world.  Homes, businesses, schools, hospitals and historic structures all over the main island of Puerto Rico have crumbled, and many residents are deeply afraid of using many of the buildings that remain standing because they are afraid that they could literally collapse at any moment.  We haven’t seen this sort of shaking in the region in more than a century, and as you will see below, experts are telling us that more quakes are coming.

Traditionally, Puerto Rico has not been known for heavy seismic activity.  But now that could be changing.  According to CNN, there have been more than 500 quakes “of magnitude 2 or greater” since December 28th…

Since December 28, more than 500 earthquakes of magnitude 2 or greater have rattled the area, according to the US Geological Survey. Many of them were relatively shallow, which means they were likely felt on land.
Of the hundreds of earthquakes, 32 were magnitude 4 and above, including the ones Monday and Tuesday.

And overall, there have been “more than a thousand quakes” of all sizes since this earthquake swarm first started in December…

Since the tremors began last month, Puerto Rico has experienced more than a thousand quakes, most of them too small to feel.

The mainstream media really began to take notice when the main island of Puerto Rico was hit by a magnitude 4.7 earthquake on December 28th, and that was quickly followed by a magnitude 5.0 quake.

Then just a few days ago we witnessed a magnitude 5.8 quake, a magnitude 6.4 quake and a magnitude 6.0 quake in rapid succession…

A 6.4 magnitude earthquake rumbled across Puerto Rico on Tuesday, killing at least one person and knocking out power to virtually the entire island of more than 3 million.

An aftershock three hours later registered at magnitude 6.0. The temblors came one day after the island was shaken by a 5.8 magnitude quake that crumbled homes and triggered states of emergency across the island.

Needless to say, none of this is normal.

In fact, the magnitude 6.4 quake was the largest that Puerto Rico has experienced in more than 100 years.

The destruction that has been caused by these earthquakes is immense, and at one point approximately two-thirds of the main island was without power.

Eventually, the power will be restored and structures will be rebuilt.

But in some cases, the damage that has been done can never be repaired…

Punta Ventana, a stone arch shaped like a window and located beside the ocean of Puerto Rico’s southern coast, was destroyed after the Caribbean island was rocked by a 5.8 magnitude earthquake early Monday morning. A 5.1 magnitude quake followed just hours later.

“Playa Ventana has collapsed,” said Guayanilla spokesman Glidden Lopez, according to the Miami Herald. “Today our icon is nothing but a memory.”

So why is this happening?

Well, the USGS is telling us that Puerto Rico is literally “being squeezed” between two tectonic plates…

“Tectonics in Puerto Rico are dominated by the convergence between the North America and Caribbean plates, with the island being squeezed between the two,” the USGS said. “To the north of Puerto Rico, North America subducts beneath the Caribbean plate along the Puerto Rico trench. To the south of the island, … Caribbean plate upper crust subducts beneath Puerto Rico at the Muertos Trough.”

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