Northern California: Shaken and Hopefully Stirred By 6.4 Magnitude Quake

 

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In the past couple of hours a 6.4 magnitude quake has struck near Ferndale, California (see USGS report). and while major damage has not been reported, thousands of people are reportedly without power (see PG&E outage map below).

It is still the middle of the night, however, and we probably won't know the full extent of the damage for several hours. Since the initial quake, there have been roughly 60 aftershocks of 2.5 Magnitude or higher, although none have exceeded 4.6 Magnitude. 

Additional aftershocks are likely, and while rare, higher magnitude aftershocks are possible in the days to come. The Humboldt County OES tweeted an hour ago that no Tsunami was generated by this quake.

California is no stranger to earthquakes, of course, and as we discussed in October (see The 2022 (International) Great Shakeout Earthquake Drill (Oct 20th)) they are far from alone in living under the threat of seismic activity.  In 2006 the USGS calculated that earthquakes posed a significant risk to 75 million Americans living in 39 States.

Since then, populations have changed and/or shifted and ongoing research has uncovered new seismic risks (see USGS: Updated U.S. Seismic Risk Hazard Maps), providing geologists with a better understanding of the extent of ground shaking from these quakes.

A study, published in 2015 in the journal Earthquake Spectra, nearly doubled – to 143 million - the number of Americans who live or work in areas susceptible to potentially damaging ground shaking.

2014 Update To The USGS Seismic Risk Map 

Earthquakes aren't the only seismic hazard in the United States, as there are nearly a dozen `very high risk' volcanoes in the continental US (4 in Washington, 4 in Oregon & 3 in California), along dozens of `lesser' threats. While earthquake damage is generally localized, volcanic eruptions  can affect property and populations thousands of miles away.

While the `big one' in California (see Dr. Lucy Jones: `Imagine America Without Los Angeles’) is perhaps the most anticipated major disaster of all time, there are other areas in the continental United States equally ripe for a big quake.

• FEMA and the U.S. government conducted a huge drill six years ago (see FEMA: Cascadia Rising 2016) involving 20,000 people from both the United States and Canada, in order to prepare for a catastrophic M9.0 quake & tsunami off the Pacific coast.

• And in 2011 – during the bicentennial of the four great New Madrid earthquakes of 1811-12 – FEMA and other federal agencies mounted the largest National Level Exercise (NLE) to that date, revolving around a catastrophic earthquake occurring in the New Madrid Seismic Zone (NMSZ) that would involve eight Central U.S. States.

According to FEMA's 2021 Household Survey on Preparedness, only 59% of households took 3 or more (of 12 recommended) preparedness steps in 2021. 

Although that is up 2% from the 2019 survey, it is far from ideal. Whether it is due to a CAT 5 Hurricane, a major earthquake, a solar storm, or a blizzard, you and your family may be called upon to fend for yourselves -  without power, water, or emergency services - for days, or even weeks. 

So . .  if a disaster struck your region today, and the power went out, stores closed their doors, and water stopped flowing from your kitchen tap for the next 7 to 14 days . . . you are you prepared with:

• A battery operated NWS Emergency Radio to find out what was going on, and to get vital instructions from emergency officials
• A decent first-aid kit, so that you can treat injuries
• Enough non-perishable food and water on hand to feed and hydrate your family (including pets) for the duration
• A way to provide light when the grid is down.
• A way to cook safely without electricity
• A way to purify or filter water
• A way to handle basic sanitation and waste disposal. 
• A way to stay cool (fans) or warm when the power is out.
• A small supply of cash to use in case credit/debit machines are not working
• An emergency plan, including meeting places, emergency out-of-state contact numbers, a disaster buddy, and in case you must evacuate, a bug-out bag
• Spare supply of essential prescription medicines that you or your family may need
• A way to entertain yourself, or your kids, during a prolonged blackout

If not, you've got some important work to do. A good place to get started is by visiting Ready.gov.

For more on earthquake risks in the United States, you may want to revisit:

USGS: Induced Earthquakes Raise Chances of Damaging Shaking in 2016

California Quakes : Concrete Concerns

Estimating The Economic Impact Of A San Andreas Quake