San Andreas Fault 'Locked, Loaded And Ready To Roll' With Big Earthquake, Expert Says

[Purveyor]

Southern California’s section of the San Andreas fault is “locked, loaded and ready to roll,” a leading earthquake scientist said Wednesday at the National Earthquake Conference in Long Beach.

The San Andreas fault is one of California’s most dangerous, and is the state’s longest fault. Yet for Southern California, the last big earthquake to strike the southern San Andreas was in 1857, when a magnitude 7.9 earthquake ruptured an astonishing 185 miles between Monterey County and the San Gabriel Mountains near Los Angeles.

It has been quiet since then — too quiet, said Thomas Jordan, director of the Southern California Earthquake Center.

Although the Pacific plate is moving northwest relative to North America at about 16 feet, or 5 meters, every 100 years, the southern San Andreas fault has been quiet for more than a century. (Thomas Jordan / Southern California Earthquake Center)

“The springs on the San Andreas system have been wound very, very tight. And the southern San Andreas fault, in particular, looks like it’s locked, loaded and ready to go,” Jordan said in the opening keynote talk.

Other sections of the San Andreas fault also are far overdue for a big quake. Further southeast of the Cajon Pass, such as in San Bernardino County, the fault has not moved substantially since an earthquake in 1812, and further southeast toward the Salton Sea, it has been relatively quiet since about 1680 to 1690.

more...

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-san-andreas-fault-earthquake-20160504-story.html

[lovemydog]

1. Anyone who lives along the fault:

what do you think?

[Retrograde]

3. It's been quiet - too quiet

Here in the Bay Area, we had a number of moderate quakes on the San Andreas before Loma Prieta in 1989 - and very little since. And the Hayward Fault has been even quieter. I worry that a lot of people have developed a false sense of security.

[REP]

5. Not quiet at all. Just very mild shakes.

[REP]

4. I can see the epicenter of the Loma Prieta quake from my deck

I drive alongside the San Andreas daily.

Meh.

Where I'm from, we had tornados and icestorms.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

6. We live about 15 miles from the southern end of the San Andreas Fault

We drive across it whenever we drive "down the hill" to the Palm Springs area (we live in the desert).

In 1992 we got hit by a 7.1 quake from a non-San Andreas related fault line. It bounced us around quite a bit, and there were aftershocks for the next week or so, but it's nothing like what's in store when the Big One hits.

Hopefully we will have left Southern California by then.

BTW, we had one small (1.8 magnitude) quake about eight years ago whose epicenter was about 2,000 feet from our house. It felt like the house had been lifted straight up 4 or 5 inches and then dropped. Strange.

[liberal N proud]

2. Not for a long, long while I hope

But if that's not possible, at least, wait 2 more days until my vacation is done and I am on a Jet Plane.

[brer cat]

7. lol

Stay safe and enjoy your vacation!

[mnhtnbb]

8. When I was working at the Hospital Council of Southern California in the early 80's

my boss was consumed with the idea of The Big One hitting the L.A. area and what it would
mean in terms of emergency preparedness for the hospitals. It is definitely a concern.

We left L.A. in 1988 and have never looked back other than to visit once or twice a year
while relatives were still living there.

We're going to a wedding in SoCal in August and on to L.A. for a couple of days. Please, please,
I do not want The Big One to hit while we are there!