Times that magnitude by about 10, and that was the Northridge Earthquake in 1994. Never forget that one and don't ever want to go through another one like it.

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Originally posted by eroller:
Not sure a 5.9 would barely get a mention on the LA news! LOL Ernie

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Apparently FOX News thought the same. Shepard Smith all but dismissed the event and went to live coverage of Libya, the Neil Cavuto interviewed Jeb Bush.

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Originally posted by dmwnc1:
Was just watching some geologist on the news. He was saying that because of the dense rock structure of the area surrounding the epicenter it was felt wider and stronger than an equivalent sized earthquake in California. I am 200 miles away from the epicenter and my building actually shook. I thought a truck hit the building! Definitely the highlight of my day and about 100 million others in a dozen different states.

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"Ground Acceleration" measures how hard the earth actually shook, rather than the total energy of an earthquake which is
the Richter Scale measurement. I know the Northridge (LA) earthquake had one of the highest ground acceleration measurements recorded in an urban area. It was pretty severe and it also happened at 4am when everyone was sleeping which made it even more frightening. Buildings and freeways collapsed and unfortunately people were killed. LA was pretty much put on lockdown for fear of looting and we had a curfew for at least a week. My apartment was in Hollywood on the 8th floor and I had a view of the LA basin. I remember thinking the building was actually collapsing as dishes, my TV, and even my kitchen ceiling were crashing around me. Everything was pitch black. I got the courage to step on my balcony and it was so eerie. The city was blacked out except for flashes of light from transformers that were blowing out. The sound of car alarms broke the utter silence and then there were some fires seen around the city. I slept at a friends house in Encino for a week after, not that we slept much with all the aftershocks.

Certainly something I will never forget or want to go through again.

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Originally posted by eroller:

"Ground Acceleration" measures how hard the earth actually shook, rather than the total energy of an earthquake which is
the Richter Scale measurement. I know the Northridge (LA) earthquake had one of the highest ground acceleration measurements recorded in an urban area. It was pretty severe and it also happened at 4am when everyone was sleeping which made it even more frightening. Buildings and freeways collapsed and unfortunately people were killed. LA was pretty much put on lockdown for fear of looting and we had a curfew for at least a week. My apartment was in Hollywood on the 8th floor and I had a view of the LA basin. I remember thinking the building was actually collapsing as dishes, my TV, and even my kitchen ceiling were crashing around me. Everything was pitch black. I got the courage to step on my balcony and it was so eerie. The city was blacked out except for flashes of light from transformers that were blowing out. The sound of car alarms broke the utter silence and then there were some fires seen around the city. I slept at a friends house in Encino for a week after, not that we slept much with all the aftershocks.

Certainly something I will never forget or want to go through again.

Ernie

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Originally posted by Cunard Fan:

I slept soundly through that quake. And I was only a few miles from the epicenter in Burbank. I do remember the aftermath though.

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Hard to believe anyone could sleep through an earthquake that toppled freeways and buildings. The violent shaking literally threw me out of bed, as things were crashing all around me. Either your area didn't get the brunt of the shaking, you're a very heavy sleeper, or you were just a baby at the time and were oblivious.

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Originally posted by eroller:

Hard to believe anyone could sleep through an earthquake that toppled freeways and buildings. The violent shaking literally threw me out of bed, as things were crashing all around me. Either your area didn't get the brunt of the shaking, you're a very heavy sleeper, or you were just a baby at the time and were oblivious.

Ernie

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Originally posted by Cunard Fan:

We still joke about it today, everyone else in my family was wakened (like you said it was very strong) but not me. I was pretty young (4) and a pretty heavy sleeper (I could sleep through almost anything). I did wake up right after though and I remember the rest of the night quite clearly...like you said above, it was eerie.

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You were lucky to sleep through it! Funny how they say kids can sleep through anything. It's so true. When I was a kid I could sleep through anything too. The older I get the more of a light sleeper I become. It sucks.

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Originally posted by Frosty 4:
Yes we have the New Madrid fault to worry about. They say St. Louis would be in shambles if and when this Earthquake occurs. We have had a few slight tremors over the years but a big one is expected in the near future.

Frosty 4

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What is the "near future"? A hundred years or five? No one can predict earthquakes or their frequency. The best they can do is look at historical data which often times is not very accurate. Seismologists have predicted "the big one" in California happening any day now for about 20 years. Still hasn't happened. It may happen tomorrow or a hundred years from now. No way of telling so you live your life hopefully not in fear, and just be as prepared as you can.

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Originally posted by DAMBROSI2:
About "Near future", well as with anything regarding those words. All we can go on is the current data available with New Madrid and Wabash Valley Faults in this region. We will have a catastrophic quake 'soon', it's just the way it could happen. Sure, we can't see these fault lines like the San Andreas. However, we are getting close to our "Big One" because of recent changes in tectonic plates, the quake that occured in Haiti, then these two quakes today; are adding to the pressure that will cause the spring to open. It's just the time.

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I think these predictions are all speculation. The technology just doesn't exist today, and we are talking about plates changing over a period of thousands of years, so ambiguous terms such as "soon" and "near future" are just that, ambiguous. It could mean tomorrow or a hundred years from now relative to the creation and movement of these plates. I've read some articles that speculate that the New Madrid fault may be shutting down due to lack of any movement so who knows?

Of course I'm sure if you are watching your local news they are putting on all kinds of experts talking about the risk of earthquakes in your area. The same story I'm sure is being repeated in cities all over the US. It's the topic of the day and the news will sensationalize it to the extreme. Next week it will all be forgotten and we will have something else to talk about. It's one reason I don't watch TV news. Too much sensationalism to the point of being ridiculous. I prefer to just read the facts online from reputable sources and form my own opinions.

[ 08-24-2011: Message edited by: dmwnc1 ]

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Originally posted by eroller:

You were lucky to sleep through it! Funny how they say kids can sleep through anything. It's so true. When I was a kid I could sleep through anything too. The older I get the more of a light sleeper I become. It sucks.

Ernie

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I have lived within the NYC area for all of my 30 years and ironically this was the 2nd earthquake I have lived through! Back in the mid-80's there was a small earthquake that began in the bronx and traveled up into Westchester County where I live and I remember being terrified. I was 5 and frightened and while that was like a 3 on the scale I felt it!. I never forgot it!

Today I was in my car at the mall and all of a sudden my car was rocking go to look at the other cars and they where all doing the same and realized it was a quake. I almost had flashbacks from when I was 5! Kind of strange however things that bother you from childhood always remains and honestly until today I always had this gut feeling that the east coast or nyc would have an earthquake again.

Ironically, last month I was in San Francisco and up on an Alaskan cruise and was releived when I got home thinking I dodged any possible earthquakes!

Nevertheless, despite it being very small here in the NYC area. I am sure people in California, Alaska or out west are yawning however it was a bit scary for those of us not used to it.

[ 08-24-2011: Message edited by: nycruiser ]

[ 08-24-2011: Message edited by: nycruiser ]

Anyone else who felt it can report their experience to the USGS

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/dyfi/

Select the VIRGINIA event
with the 5.8 level magnitude (the main event and not the aftershocks)
and EVENT TIME of 2011-08-23 17:51:04 UTC
EVENT ID = SE082311A

[ 08-24-2011: Message edited by: dmwnc1 ]

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Originally posted by lasuvidaboy:
What was left has be retrofitted to reduce the chance of additional damage or complete collapse.

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It's one reason you don't see a lot of brick in LA, and the brick buildings you do see have these little steel circles on the sides which are connected to reinforcing rods on the inside.

It's scary to think what would happen to NY in a major quake. Half the city (especially the outer boroughs) is built out of brick. I've never seen so much brick as the neighborhood in Queens that I lived in. High rise brick structures even (and not pretty). Anyway in a major quake that would all come tumbling down. Thankfully the chances of a California style major quake seem slim at best.

One thing that always surprised and scared me about LA is that it's essentially a gas city, with natural gas pipes running underneath the entire city. It seems no matter how well you retrofit the buildings, if those gas lines break you have the potential for massive fires breaking out. Then there are the areas like Marina del Rey where the ground is prone to liquefaction, and basically everything could collapse in a major quake.

Even as prepared as LA is for a major quake, you can expect significant damage and death should the "big one" ever occur. There are also numerous faults running through LA, which increases the probability of a major quake. Some speculate one of these faults (under downtown or the Westside) could produce more damage than the San Andreas.