Flood, earthquake, epedemic

[tufguy]

What is difference between "There's been an eartquake" and "There was an earthquake"?

Can we also say "There's been or there was epedemic/flood/tornado"?

Can we say "Its a earthquake/flood/tornado/epedemic prone area"?

Can we say "An earthquake came", "Flood came" or "Tornado came" or "Epedemic is going to happen"?

 

[Matthew Wai]

What is difference between "There's been an eartquake" and "There was an earthquake"?

In the first one, the earthquake started in the past and is still happening now.
In the second one, the earthquake happened in the past but not now.

I am not a teacher. Please correct me if I am wrong.

 

[tedmc]

What is difference between "There's been an earthquake" and "There was an earthquake"? As per Matthew's comment

Can we also say "There's been or there was epidemic/flood/tornado"? Yes, but why use contractions?

Can we say "It's an earthquake/flood/tornado/epidemic prone area"? Yes, but why use contractions?

Can we say "An earthquake came", "Flood came" or "Tornado came" or "Epidemic is going to happen"?
In English, you usually say there is/was an earthquake or 'an earthquake happened/struck/is imminent
I know you say 'earthquake/flood' came' in Chinese.

not a teacher

 

[Matthew Wai]

I know you say 'earthquake/flood' came' in Chinese.

The OP is not Chinese.

Not a teacher.

 

[tufguy]

Do we say "Flood happened" and "Tornado happened"?

 

[Tdol]

No

 

[Roman55]

In the first one, the earthquake started in the past and is still happening now.

I am not a teacher.

It doesn't mean that to me. 'There's been an earthquake' means that it was a recent event, but it's over now.

 

[Matthew Wai]

If so, why not say 'There was recently an earthquake'?

Not a teacher.

 

[Roman55]

I am not a teacher.

Do you think it 'started in the past and is still happening now' simply because of some rule about the present perfect?

If I am watching the news and hear 'there's been an earthquake', it's already over. Quite apart from any grammar issue, earthquakes don't last very long. The aftershocks, on the other hand, can last for weeks.

 

[MikeNewYork]

I agree with Roman. There is nothing about the present perfect that indicates the earthquake is ongoing.

 

[Matthew Wai]

If there has been an event that usually doesn't last long, should I assume that it is a recent event that is already over?

Not a teacher.

 

[MikeNewYork]

That would depend on the language that described it.

 

[Matthew Wai]

How about 'There has been a plane crash'? A plane crash can hardly last long.

Not a teacher.

 

[Tdol]

If there has been an event that usually doesn't last long, should I assume that it is a recent event that is already over?

Have you ever been in a serious natural disaster? They don't necessarily stop when the shaking or the rain stops.

 

[Matthew Wai]

But it is the aftermath rather than the disaster itself.

Not a teacher.

 

[MikeNewYork]

I agree about the plane crash.

 

[Matthew Wai]

'In the past decade, there has been an earthquake.'
The earthquake could have happened anytime in the past decade; the exact time is unknown. Am I right?
Not a teacher.

 

[MikeNewYork]

In that sentence, yes. But, the fact is that there were many earthquakes in any particular decade. And it is unclear when an earthquake is over. What about the aftershocks? Are they not part of the earthquake?

 

[jutfrank]

I am a teacher. You're correct about the second sentence, where the verb is in the past simple.

However, the first one is in the present perfect aspect, which here means the earthquake both started in the past and finished in the past. (If it was still happening now we would not use a perfect tense, we would likely say 'There's an earthquake!')

The effect of the present perfect is to make the earthquake situation more present, or relevant to now. You might use this aspect to tell the news of an earthquake, whereas you would use the past simple to create a kind of distance from the situation.