The Credibility Of Cascadia's Earthquake

The San Andreas fault line has caused constant development nightmares for large urban areas such as San Francisco as well as the other cities built on top of it. Fault lines are one of the side effects of the earth’s tectonic plates shifting that can result in devastating earthquakes. Some of the most devastating earthquakes in our modern era have occurred along the San Andreas fault line due to a dense population. The most notable and destructive earthquake on the San Andreas fault line occurred in San Francisco in 1906. The reason this earthquake was so deadly was because of its magnitude and the city’s poor planning. This earthquake was a wakeup call for San Francisco and force the city to revolutionize its knowledge on earthquakes and how to protect their city. Today San Francisco is one of the most well prepared cities for an earthquake and has made great discoveries in earthquake safety measures. The 1906 earthquake in San Francisco has drastically changed how the city has developed its zoning and building code policies, and its earthquake research.

Kathryn Schulz has provided insight of the dangers of the Cascadia Subduction Zone and the lack of our countries preparedness. Seismologist has detected and proven probability of an enormous earthquake and/or tsunami that is over due to take place along the western coast line and yet the lack of preparedness is evident. Thousands of lives will be lost due to unpreparedness.

California’s unique geography as a state makes it a very appealing place to call home. From the odd east to west transverse San Gabriel mountain ranges of the Los Angeles Basin, to the bumpy coastal ranges of the Bay Area, any person can find a compatible topographic terrain to their liking. California may seem to be the perfect place to live with its ideal climate and extensive geographic features. However, due to California’s location over the shifting continental plates, coupled with its enormous and also multiple faults, at any time this great state can fall victim to a seismic disaster. After examining evidence from both Rong-Gong Lin’s II Los Angeles Times article of April 18, 2016 and the NOVA videos Killer Quake ( 2006), Earthquake (2007), as well as Geologic Journey II – Episode 3 (The Pacific Rim: Americas) – Part 3 (San Francisco) and The Great San Francisco Earthquake (American Experience ~ 2005), one can take a comparative account of the three major earthquakes of California’s past. Although each earthquake was very devastating on is own; the Great Quake 0f 1906, the Loma Prieta quake of 1989, and the NorthRidge quake of 1994 each amounted to an extensive forfeiture of property and life. Each of these earthquakes created much suffering and loss. It is imperative for each citizen of this great state to understand the damage that a California quake can actually do and be prepared; for the threat of one always looms.

According to the research report, it will cause thousands of people die, towns submerged, buildings and bridges damaged once a huge earthquake and tsunamis happened on the Pacific Northwest area near American coast. And losses will be estimated at over 5 billion dollar US dollars. This shocking article was composed by seismic safety advisory committee in Oregon. According to materials, a super-strong earthquake once happened in A.D. 1700 Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ) on the Pacific Northwest coast. There are some experts forecast that another super-huge earthquake will occur in the future. The report has shown that once the earthquake occurs, the regions from North California to British Columbia Coastal region will suffer devastation, cause heavy casualties. Water and electricity shortage issues definitely follow this heavy disaster, meanwhile, communication and heating system and gas supply will definitely broken off in the light of this earthquake. The CSZ is a 1,000 km long dipping fault that stretches from Northern Vancouver Island to Cape Mendocino in northern California. It separates the Juan de Fuca (Juan

“The Really Big One” is an article by Kathryn Schulz about the Cascadia Subduction Zone, a fault line that runs seven hundred miles along the West Coast. It consists of two tectonic plates where one plate is sliding underneath another. In this case, the oceanic plate Juan de Fuca is sliding under the continental plate known as the North American plate. In her article, Schulz repeats the words of seismologists and scientists alike in the opinion that the Cascadia Subduction Zone is overdue for a magnitude 9.0 or higher earthquake and resulting tsunami. No one in the Pacific Northwest is prepared for it. With historical stories and examples from around the world Schulz warns of the damage to be done when the “Really Big One” finally makes itself known.

The San Francisco Earthquake written by Jack London is journal of his events throughout the devastating acts of God that hit San Francisco in 1906. (461-466)

The tectonic setting for the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake was in the outermost shell of earth consisting of rigid plates that have been moving for hundreds of millions of years. Two of these moving plates meet in western California; the boundary between them is a zone of faults, the principal one being the San Andreas fault. The Pacific Plate (on the west) slides horizontally northwestward relative to the North American Plate (on the east), causing earthquakes along the San Andreas and associated faults. The San Andreas fault is a transform plate boundary, accommodating horizontal relative motions (usgs.gov).

It’s been called the sleeping giant. Myths of California breaking off and floating away into the Pacific Ocean. This myth is one of the most popular to this day. Why? Because of a 800 mile long fault that makes it’s way through California called the San Andreas Fault. Beginning when the East Pacific Rise submerged under the North American Plate about 40 miles away from what is now Los Angeles. Spreading northwest and southeast, The San Andreas Fault or SAF gradually grew, and is still growing. The grinding plates, along with earthquakes, to this day are gradually reshaping California, as we know it. In this paper, we will look at the history of The SAF and learn what it is and what it could be capable of doing.

Tsunamis occur when an earthquake happens in the ocean and the energy goes to the water creating huge waves. Tsunamis are very dangerous they can be so strong that they wash away the city, harm thousands, and cause hundreds of thousands to billions of dollars in damage. “A giant tsunami along the West Coast would wash away coastal towns, destroy U.S. Highway 101 and cause $70 billion in damage. More than 100 bridges would be lost, power lines toppled and coastal towns isolated. Residents would have as few as 15 minutes’ notice to flee to higher ground, and as many as 10,000 would die” (Dangerous tsunami threat off U.S. West Coast). This shows what kind of damage this geo-process can

The Pacific NorthWest are bound to have natural hazards such as earthquakes, tsunamis and floods. For example japan, Japan sits at the intersection of three continental plates. The Eurasian,Pacific, and Philippines. Which, these plates are rubbing together causing hard friction, resulting in an earthquake. Tsunamis are a reaction from an earthquake, when earthquakes occur they shake the sea floor causing tsunamis. And floods are caused when the pacific overflows its natural banks. In 2011, Japan was experiencing several earthquakes a week. It became so common citizens began to stop paying them any attention, and started laughing them off just like Chris Goldfinger. However, these laughed at earthquakes were just foreshocks from “The Big One”.

My house is in San Jose, but is not located near a fault line, nor is also not on top of one. My house is four miles away from the Hayward fault, and about six miles away from the Calaveras fault. The Hayward fault has an twenty-seven percent, well the Calaveras fault has a eleven percent probability of having an earthquake in the next thirty years. For both the Hayward, and Calaveras fault earthquake will cause the MMI of seven, where I live causing intense shaking. The liquefaction susceptibility is moderate for my household, and landslides are not a problem since I am not on a slope, nor live at the base of one. As for Tsunami evacuation I am not warned to leave, but I still want to go to higher ground. Flood zones are closer to me, but

This generated one of the deadliest tsunamis known to mankind, killing over 230,000 people and leaving over two million people displaced. The epicenter of the earthquake was located in the Indian Ocean, right off the west coast of Sumatra. The tectonic plates beneath the ocean floor had been colliding and building up pressure for hundreds of years, until this day when subduction occurred between the Indian and the Burma plates. The process of subduction displaced billions of tons of water, creating waves that traveled towards the shorelines at hundreds of miles per hour and as high as sixty to one hundred feet. There was absolutely no warning for the people of Southeast Asia, as the tsunami progressed quite rapidly. (National Geographic,

California is due to be hit by an earthquake with an high magnitude of 8.0 comparable to the 1906 San Francisco 7.6 earthquake.

A nation such as this knows the danger of earthquakes and knows the importance of sufficient preparation. The people and governments of the Pacific Northwest do not have this knowledge to this degree. Earthquakes are not the most pressing danger in most people’s lives in the Pacific northwest, so they likely do not feel as obligated to prepare for a disaster they have never experienced. The policy makers in the region should be in touch with scientists to help know the risks and ensure that proper safety measures are in place. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that changes will be made to prepare for something that has not happened yet and the money will likely be spent in places that policy makers see as more

The San Andreas Fault is one of the most widely studied faults in the world. Scientists use an array of methods in collecting data and providing analysis of fault characteristics both past and present. Presently there are many differing hypothesis and models used to describe crustal movements and deformation within the Pacific and North American plate boundary. Historical earthquakes along this fault have proven to be rather large and devastating. This is important since the San Andreas Fault runs along many highly populated areas throughout Northern and Southern California. Through further research and analysis of this fault system scientists hope to solve