Earthquake in CA (Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco: houses, neighborhoods, high school)

[occa]

Magnitude-8 earthquake in Peru. Is it possible happen in CA ?

[EscapeCalifornia]

No. California never has earthquakes. At least not in the last 20,000,000 years.

[Fleet]

Originally Posted by occa

Magnitude-8 earthquake in Peru. Is it possible happen in CA ?

I certainly can happen. Most likely on the San Andreas fault.
The good news is that actual magnitude-8 EQs are rare (the "8.2" 1906 San Francisco quake is rated at a 7.8 on the more accurate Moment Magnitude scale).

[cityx]

In the Los Angeles region, the potentially more catastrophic threat would be a 7.0 earthquake on the slightly lesser known Newport-Inglewood fault. This fault runs up from the ocean through coastal Orange County, near LAX in Inglewood, and up into West Los Angeles. It has been stated many times by seismologists that a 7.0 quake on the Newport-Inglewood fault could cause significantly more damage than what would occur on the San Andreas because it literally runs under many of the cities of Southern California. An 8.0 on the San Andreas would still be potentially catastrophic but since the fault is located about 60 miles inland on the northern slope of the San Gabriel Mountains it's away from the biggest core of L.A.'s population centre. San Francisco has a much bigger threat from the San Andreas since the fault literally runs up the peninsula under the city itself.

[smellythongs]

That's scary and I live in Newport. When does this plan to happen? Omg I'm scared.

[cityx]

Originally Posted by smellythongs

That's scary and I live in Newport. When does this plan to happen? Omg I'm scared.

The last major quake on the Newport-Inglewood fault caused destruction in Long Beach in 1933. I believe the quake registered a 6.3 magnitude and destroyed most of downtown Long Beach. Of course in the 1930's, buildings consisted mostly of brick and unreinforced masonry which caused the buildings to crumble. The fault has been relatively quiet since then but still has the POTENTIAL to unleash a quake of 7.4 magnitude. Over the past twenty years or so as seismologists have accumulated more knowledge the worst case scenario of "The Big One" hitting Los Angeles has come to include the Newport-Inglewood fault in addition to the San Andreas. Than there are countless smaller faults that have the ability to create significant damage as well. One that comes to mind is the Whittier Narrows fault that caused a major quake in 1987. I was a freshman in a Whittier area high school at the time and it was really really bad. Uptown Whittier was a shambles and the old Whittier Quad Shopping Centre had collapsed.

[smellythongs]

That makes me feel SO much better. Haha.

[justsomeguy]

Originally Posted by occa

Magnitude-8 earthquake in Peru. Is it possible happen in CA ?

what are the chances of me getting killed in an earthquake in CA? I live in San Diego...live on the 3rd floor of a building built in the early 70's near the coast. Work in the 1st floor of a 4 story building further east. Should I run outside if an earthquake happens? I don't want to get crushed.

I've heard San Diego doesn't really have much of a chance of a major dangerous earthquake? Any steps I can take to avoid death if a big one hits? what are the chances of a big one hitting here in coastal San Diego?

[cityx]

Originally Posted by justsomeguy

what are the chances of me getting killed in an earthquake in CA? I live in San Diego...live on the 3rd floor of a building built in the early 70's near the coast. Work in the 1st floor of a 4 story building further east. Should I run outside if an earthquake happens? I don't want to get crushed.

I've heard San Diego doesn't really have much of a chance of a major dangerous earthquake? Any steps I can take to avoid death if a big one hits? what are the chances of a big one hitting here in coastal San Diego?

Other than the San Andreas, San Diego County has some faults of its own. The Elsinore and San Jacinto faults are ones that could produce some significant quakes although the epicentres would most likely be several miles inland. Of course that doesn't mean that major damage wouldn't occur in your own neighborhood. I remember the Northridge quake in Los Angeles in 1993. I lived in Brea, about 45 miles away, and I still ended up with plenty of cracks in my backyard pavement. The biggest concern with a major quake are with coastal neighborhoods that are built on "filler" dirt or unstable ground close to the water. A big quake, even with an epicentre miles inland could cause the dreaded liquefaction phenomenon. That's were dirt and sand come rushing up from the water table causing foundations to crumble and essentially turning the soil into quicksand. That's exactly what happened to the Marina District in San Francisco during the 1989 Loma Prieta quake. Many houses and mansions crumbled, caught fire, and began sinking beneath the ground. It seems that most of the big earthquakes in my years in Southern Cal, to make you feel a little better at least, occurred in the Los Angeles region. Unfortunately, the entire West Coast is littered with faults and it's difficult to find an area with a reduced threat unless you move to the Central Valley, (UGH!). I remember the first week I lived in Seattle we were hit by a 6.0 quake. They're definitely everywhere and hard to escape. But the rate of a major or even moderate quake is far less a risk than tropical storms, hurricanes, and blizzards that many parts of the country get almost on an annual basis.

[sanfranciscoali]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

No. California never has earthquakes. At least not in the last 20,000,000 years.

Your serious?

Hate to burst your bubble but sooo much of california is on a fault . We get them ALL the TIME.. maybe not ones that you feel alot.. but little ones.
I hear that one is coming.