San Diego is My Home

16
Apr

Shaky Ground

Author: HelenKay, Category: Emergency Situations, Neighborhoods, Weather

New reports this week say there’s a 99.7% of a major earthquake (magnitude 6.7 of higher) hitting California by 2037.  The odds are 93% for Northern California and 97% for Southern California. 

This sounds kind of awful but…uh, is this really a big surprise?  Isn’t it kind of like saying there’s a 99% chance of wildfires and mudslides in California?  These strike me as the obvious downsides of living here.  I’m thinking the scary part here is that the percentages are high enough to be considered a guarantee.  Suspecting an earthquake will hit and knowing it will are two different things.

Here’s the good news according to ABC News:

Knowing the likelihood of a strong earthquake is the first step in allowing scientists to draw up hazard maps that show the potential severity of ground shaking in an area. The information can also help with updating building codes and emergency plans and setting earthquake insurance rates.

I say we all start working on these projects.