Tuesday, April 15, 2008

99% Chance "the Big One" will Hit California within 30 Years

For as long as I can remember, I have always heard about "the Big One." The big earthquake that would hit a California fault line and cause the whole state to fall into the ocean (this was my adolescent interpretation of the event). I have never moved to Cali for that very reason. I never wanted to be there when the earthquake came.

Well, now scientists are saying that there is a 99.7% chance that a large magnitude (6.7 or larger) earthquake will hit the west coast by 2037. The 1994 Northridge earthquake under Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley was magnitude 6.7.

Every region of this nation is prone to some kind of natural disasters. Here in south Louisiana we have hurricanes. On the west coast it's earthquakes. In the midwest it's tornadoes (and corn dust...have you ever been in Indiana during harvesting season?!)...no matter where you live, the potential for the earth to spin and shake is great. Call me crazy, but I'll take a hurricane over an earthquake any day. California is a beautiful place to visit, but I won't be buying property there any time soon. At least not until around 2038.

Tracking Hurricane Gustav