The surface waves are the type of seismic waves that produce
the most severe ground movement. This wave is slow in nature and so produces a rolling
effect similar to a surface wave in a pond. This kind of wave is far more
devastating than the P waves and the S waves. The surface waves have the
capacity to shake a building from side to side until it collapses. This kind of
wave moves in a pattern similar to a circle. It actually originates at a point
and then start moving outwards in a circle.
