Scared of earthquakes in CA or just being silly?

[hawksman1234]

When i lived out there, most of the trimmering would come at nighttime when everyone is asleep.

[Wurzig]

Don't fret, Jenny. I've lived here all my life, am almost older than dirt and I have lived through many earthquakes.... California homes are fairly well-built and usually only end up with a new crack here and there..(my house got a few new ones on Easter, but that was a pretty strong one)...and maybe a few pics that get knocked crooked on walls..... You always hear about the worst, just as people in California pay attention to the homes that are blown away by tornados and hurricanes in other states, i.e. Californians can not understand why anybody would want to live in flat Florida.....if you aren't carried off by the bugs, your roof or house gets blown away in a hurricane.....

The other posters are correct when they say that the media sensationalizes stuff.....for example, we have a lot of sun here and if it's barely sprinkling, the newscasters get all excited and make you think 25 inches are falling outside and to be very careful on the way home from work, etc...(oil makes our roads slick because we don't get a lot of rain) It rains maybe half an inch and all you hear all week, (including the days that lead up to it), are 'winter storm warning'. To a newcomer, you might think you need to build an ark....to a Californian, 'well, I'll try to remember to put my umbrella in the car and I will try not to wear summer sandals that day'....

There are some super-duper scientists out a JPL, (in the hills near Pasadena).....they are brilliant Cal Tech types of people....Kate (forgot her last name), and Lucy Jones are two that ring a bell. (Kate has been there for many years--she is turning gray now--she's a no-nonsense person with a a no-nonsense pixie cut. We watched Lucy being pregnant and then not pregnant--they've been with us for a long time). They study earthquakes and tell you all about them, but at this time, none are predicted. We sometimes say 'oh, this feels like earthquake weather', well, that's not true either..... We don't know when they are coming and they can come at any time: winter, summer, day, night.....Californians just kinda go with it and 'enjoy the ride'.

[shoe01]

Originally Posted by Charles

According to officials, the Big One is supposed to hit on July 14, 2042 so whatever source you are getting that information from should be ignored.

Ugh, I was planning to visit that very day.

[Georgie L.]

I have lived in CA for darn near 44 years. In all parts of the state.

I have felt exactly TWO earthquakes.

Loma Prieta. I didn't live in SF. I was just there for the World Series.

Whittier Narrows. I was in my car waiting for class to start at CSU Fullerton.

TWO.

My sister, who's lived here her entire life as well, has felt two.

Whittier Narrows and Northridge.

We build to survive 'em. If it's not earthquakes, it's hurricanes or tornadoes.

[EscapeCalifornia]

You must not live in a very quake-prone area. I've certainly felt more than 2 quakes in my lifetime. None of them have been majorly destructive, but I've sure felt a bunch.

[Georgie L.]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

You must not live in a very quake-prone area. I've certainly felt more than 2 quakes in my lifetime. None of them have been majorly destructive, but I've sure felt a bunch.

Orange County.
Silicone Valley.
Sacramento Valley.

Not necessarily in that order.....

[preppyglam]

IMO, earthquakes are the best "natural disaster" in a structurally sophisticated state such as California. Almost every building built (that isn't really old, anyway), bridge, overpass, etc. is built beyond what is structurally required for the "big one".

Even in earthquakes that are big enough to feel (if you are close to a 3.0, you will feel some movement), they are typically over pretty quick and most of them do ZERO damage or harm. In bigger ones, plates may fall off walls, things may fall of shelves....and it may be a bit scary to some for a few seconds....but that's about it. Nothing crazy happens. Cows dont go flying through the air. Roofs don't fly off. Trucks aren't lifted off the ground. Water doesnt gush into your house or make your street into a river and ruin everything with water damage. 50+ MPH winds don't blow in your windows....I mean, really....earthquakes are where its at, disaster wise. After an earthquake is over, you go about your merry way, pick up the plates that fell, maybe straighten the mirror on the wall and you're done.

There are SO many other reasons to consider NOT moving to CA....earthquakes would honestly be at or near the bottom of the list. We have other problems....like our politicians, our taxes, illegal immigration, education....all way worse than the threat and the ordeal of an actual earthquake.

[Bluejeans8]

Originally Posted by PDX_LAX

Earthquakes are real and they happen in California.

So do tornados in the plains
So do floods in the upper midwest
So do hurricanes in Florida

Don't spend your life worrying.

Exactly. Additionally, the Midwest sits on a much more deadly fault than the San Andreas. When the New Madrid fault decides to wake up again, major cities such as Memphis, St. Louis and Chicago are going to suffer catastrophic damage. Planet earth is a moving, breathing entity. Best to just go forward and be happy.

[Bluejeans8]

Originally Posted by preppyglam

IMO, earthquakes are the best "natural disaster" in a structurally sophisticated state such as California. Almost every building built (that isn't really old, anyway), bridge, overpass, etc. is built beyond what is structurally required for the "big one".

Even in earthquakes that are big enough to feel (if you are close to a 3.0, you will feel some movement), they are typically over pretty quick and most of them do ZERO damage or harm. In bigger ones, plates may fall off walls, things may fall of shelves....and it may be a bit scary to some for a few seconds....but that's about it. Nothing crazy happens. Cows dont go flying through the air. Roofs don't fly off. Trucks aren't lifted off the ground. Water doesnt gush into your house or make your street into a river and ruin everything with water damage. 50+ MPH winds don't blow in your windows....I mean, really....earthquakes are where its at, disaster wise. After an earthquake is over, you go about your merry way, pick up the plates that fell, maybe straighten the mirror on the wall and you're done.

There are SO many other reasons to consider NOT moving to CA....earthquakes would honestly be at or near the bottom of the list. We have other problems....like our politicians, our taxes, illegal immigration, education....all way worse than the threat and the ordeal of an actual earthquake.

Haha (or not haha) - you should see how much fun Chicago isn't. It seems to be a post-requisite for our Governors to go to prison. California, Florida and Illinois are at the top of the charts for illegal immigrants, and we lead the nation at the moment in murders. Oh, and lest I forget to mention the New Madrid fault. People in the Midwest were actually intelligent enough to build nuclear reactors on it. I'd take Cali any day. At least the sun shines there and you don't have to deal with ice.

[Voyageur]

Originally Posted by Bluejeans8

Exactly. Additionally, the Midwest sits on a much more deadly fault than the San Andreas. When the New Madrid fault decides to wake up again, major cities such as Memphis, St. Louis and Chicago are going to suffer catastrophic damage. Planet earth is a moving, breathing entity. Best to just go forward and be happy.

On the plus side, large earthquakes on the New Madrid Fault are less frequent than earthquakes on the San Andreas Fault.

On the minus side, the largest New Madrid earthquakes are a lot larger than the largest of the San Andreas earthquakes, and the area affected is far more widespread:



But that wouldn't stop me from living in Memphis or St. Louis if I wanted to do so.