Moving to Northern California and Need Advise About Earthquake Hazard Areas (deal, job)
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In that case, I wouldn't move to California (and definitely wouldn't work in San Leandro!) If you don't have a choice, check out the shaking maps for the area and see what you're most comfortable with: ABAG Earthquake Maps and Information They also have maps that show impact on various cities of quakes on various faults, so you can try out different cities you're considering. (They have scenarios for 18 different sections of fault, but note that the existence of a fault does not = an earthquake, since some are considered much less likely to become active.)
For what it's worth, it would take a very catastrophic quake to cause everything to collapse or be swallowed up by the earth. It would affect virtually everywhere in the Greater Bay Area, and probably much of California. You might still have a home standing, but you probably wouldn't have a job or any way to get to the job. If a disaster of that scale ever comes, it becomes a national crisis and all bets are off. (Think Katrina---and even that storm wasn't the feared "direct hit" for New Orleans, which would have been much more devastating. Moreover, California has been much more proactive about seismically upgrading its infrastructure and preparing for a quake than Louisiana was about dealing with communities built below sea level, and I expect that will show if the preparation is ever put to the test.)
USGS suggests the following areas of the country for moderate earthquake risk: Alabama, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, or West Virginia. I'd try your job hunt there.
Last edited by artemis78; 10-14-2008 at 03:17 PM..
Livermore? wow isnt that right on top of the Hayward Fault? I dont want to be on any major faults.
If you're going to base a decision on irrational fear (and it is irrational), you should at least look at a map first. Livermore is between the Calaveras and Greenville faults (the latter runs through Tracy). Nowhere in the Bay Area is far from an earthquake fault, and you're not going to negate danger, what little there is, just by being a few more miles away from one.
Believe it or not one of the largest earthquakes to ever hit the U.S. hit in Southeast Missouri.
Your fear is valid, but it shouldn't be the basis of your decisions. I think you should focus more on things like schools, cost of living, and the overall quality of life you will have in the area.
It's kind of like fear of tornados. Sure they do happen in the midwest, but the chance of YOU ever being affected by one is very slim. I grew up in tornado country and was never affected.
We lived in Martinez on a hill when the Oct 1989 earthquake hit and after that we wanted off that shaky hill. So we moved to Antioch. Well guess what. Turns out there are a few small faults out there and one that ran right under our house. So every now and then it would sound like someone slammed the basement door, only we didnt have a basement. Too funny. I moved back to Pleasant Hill for 9 years, back on a hill and I think most of my gray hair came from those stinkin earthquakes. Right before I moved 3 months ago, they were getting more and more frequent and the epicenters were getting closer, Lafayette, Walnut Creek, Alamo. Well that wasnt the only reason I moved, but I am on the East Coast now and no longer afraid to be stopped in traffic under an overpass! :-))
Well, if you are really looking at Tracy, you can try Mountain House, which has a direct commuter bus to BART. From there you can get to San Leandro or Bay Fair BART. However, if you must drive because your place of employment is too far from BART, you really don't have an option.
Livermore is FAR from the Hayward Fault, but there is the Greenville Fault to the east of the city. The Greenville Fault has been fairly quiet in the last couple of years in comparison to the Hayward Fault or the Calaveras Fault.
The Hayward Fault is really the current problem child. It's probably not worth worrying about the others that much. It's also hard to predict what's going to shake for a given earth movement, given the varying geology around here.
Seriously, though, if the possibility of earthquakes freak out your wife that much, you might be setting yourself up for unhappiness out here. Earthquakes really aren't a big deal, but small ones are relatively common. I've lived here all my life, and kinda enjoy them, but they can also be unsettling.
You're going to have enough problems figuring out a place to live you can afford, that's big enough and has the right schools (if you have kids), has the culture you want, and not too much driving. You should probably make a top-five list of important things, with earthquake safety in the list but not necessarily #1 on the list, and see how things, er, shake out...
Trust me, I live in the Central Valley. You might be a bit safer from earthquake repercussions, but you'll be miserable. It literally sucks out every nice thing that living in the Bay area provides. The air quality is so terrible, our schools actually have to fly flags to warn the public how bad it gets. Cancer rates are extreme and quality of health care is low. I know of so many families, my own included, that lost loved ones because they did not get their family members medical care outside the area.
Good schools are a rarity. We are lucky enough to send our kids to private school.
We are the top area for home mortgage defaults. Doesn't do much for our neighborhoods.
Shopping and lifestyle choices are pretty much nonexistent. We have a few good restaurants and two performing arts centers. Really, that is pretty much it. Other than the basics, everyone I know travels west to shop. The few boutiques we get that carry nice things quickly go out of business. The area just can't support it.
I could go on......but I think I've probably made my point. You can't borrow tomorrow's trouble. You have to live your life for today. The Bay area is such a beautiful, interesting place to be. You'll never be bored. The "Big One" may come one day, but you know what? It may never come. I would hate to pass up an awesome opportunity for something that may never happen. To me, that would be like not going to see a great movie because I might get hit by a drunk driver. (which, actually, does have a greater chance of happening than being killed from an earthquake!)
Trust me, I live in the Central Valley. You might be a bit safer from earthquake repercussions, but you'll be miserable. It literally sucks out every nice thing that living in the Bay area provides. The air quality is so terrible, our schools actually have to fly flags to warn the public how bad it gets. Cancer rates are extreme and quality of health care is low. I know of so many families, my own included, that lost loved ones because they did not get their family members medical care outside the area.
Good schools are a rarity. We are lucky enough to send our kids to private school.
We are the top area for home mortgage defaults. Doesn't do much for our neighborhoods.
Shopping and lifestyle choices are pretty much nonexistent. We have a few good restaurants and two performing arts centers. Really, that is pretty much it. Other than the basics, everyone I know travels west to shop. The few boutiques we get that carry nice things quickly go out of business. The area just can't support it.
I could go on......but I think I've probably made my point. You can't borrow tomorrow's trouble. You have to live your life for today. The Bay area is such a beautiful, interesting place to be. You'll never be bored. The "Big One" may come one day, but you know what? It may never come. I would hate to pass up an awesome opportunity for something that may never happen. To me, that would be like not going to see a great movie because I might get hit by a drunk driver. (which, actually, does have a greater chance of happening than being killed from an earthquake!)
Good luck to you.
Quite honestly, if your wife can get over the idea of earthquakes, Castro Valley is a nice city to consider for its vincinity to employment and cost of housing compared to Alameda. Alameda is also a good choice for your case, but it is slightly more expensive and the homes are smaller for the price. It does have more character and history, with victorian homes. Castro Valley is pretty much a suburban tract area with retail located in nearby San Leandro, Hayward, and Dublin. You'd think that because of large earthquakes, much of the housing stock in the Bay Area is newer, but most buildings do not collapse even in major earthquakes.
Castro Valley, depending on which part you choose to live in, is close to the Hayward fault, but it is located upon harder ground than Alameda. There is a much lower chance for liquidfaction and the shaking can be less intense than a city with sandy soils that is further away from the fault.
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If you don't have a choice, check out the shaking maps for the area and see what you're most comfortable with: 
