Poor California

Fires, Arnold for Gov, what next?? EARTHQUAKE

An earthquake rocked southern California last night, killing three people and sending tremors from Los Angeles to San Francisco. With a magnitude of 6.5 on the Richter scale, according to the US Geological Survey, its epicentre was the northern coastal town of Cambria, 185 miles north-west of Los Angeles, where residents felt a gentle, sustained rolling. In Paso Robles, 20 miles east of the epicentre, the roof of a clock tower was hurled into the street, crushing a row of parked cars. The bodies of three people were pulled from the rubble outside a row of shops.-Gary Younge. December 23, 2003 The Guardian

How Do Earthquakes Happen?

The primary cause of earthquakes is the movement of masses of earth along fault lines. Fault lines can occur anywhere. They are normally created from pressure generated by the movement of continental.

There is constant pressure on continental plates to move. Yet the friction of land masses being pushed together only allows movement to occur in fits and starts. So when movement finally comes as a result of all this continental pushing, we often feel it, and we call it an earthquake. Some of the geological activities caused by plate tectonics include volcanoes, mountain creation, island creation and a phenomena known as subduction.

Subduction occurs when one plate (usually an ocean plate) gets pushed beneath another plate (usually a land mass). Imagine one huge mass of rock, being pushed beneath another huge mass of rock. As might be imagined, it is within subduction zones that the most numerous and most severe earthquakes happen. One of the most prominent subduction zones runs along the Pacific Coast of the United States. This is why California is notorious for its earthquakes.

information collected from http://www.readinessinfo.com/eqgeology.shtml

What is the Richter Scale?

Richter Magnitude and Effects:

Less than 3.5 Generally not felt, but recorded.

3.5-5.4 Often felt, but rarely causes damage.

Under 6.0 At most slight damage to well-designed buildings.
Can cause major damage to poorly constructed buildings
over small regions.

6.1-6.9 Can be destructive in areas up to about 100 kilometers
across where people live.

7.0-7.9 Major earthquake. Can cause serious damage over larger areas.

8 or greater Great earthquake. Can cause serious damage in areas several
hundred kilometers across.

information collected from http://www.seismo.unr.edu/ftp/pub/louie/class/100/magnitude.html

Can an Earthquake Occur Where I Live?

Check these links for maps:
http://www.readinessinfo.com/eqmap1.shtml
http://www.readinessinfo.com/eqmap2.shtml
http://www.readinessinfo.com/eqmap3.shtml

*ahem* yay, I used html tags for the first time and it worked!!! (yeah I went a little crazy with it)