Large 7.0 magnitude earthquake hits off Northern California coast, tsunami warning issued

HUMBOLDT COUNTY – A large earthquake has just struck off the coast of Humboldt County on Thursday morning, prompting a tsunami warning.

According to the US Geological Survey, the quake struck around 10:44 a.m., west of Petrolia, California in the Pacific Ocean. A Tsunami Warning has been issued for 45 miles southwest of Eureka.

The earthquake had been registered preliminarily as having a magnitude of 6.6, but USGS updated it 7.0.

The earthquake had been registered preliminarily as having a magnitude of 6.6, but USGS updated it 7.0.

More

7.0 earthquake hits off Northern California coast; tsunami warning canceled

A large, 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Humboldt County on Thursday morning.

www.cbsnews.com

 

[1LoverofGod]

From what I researched, its more likely an 8.0-8.3, still, incredibly strong.

What I worry an-out is the Cascadia Subduction Zone which is capable of a 9.5 if the entire fault goes at once which ranges from No Cal, all the way up the coast to southern Wash state.

That's true about the Cascadia fault line. Where the potential catastrophe exists is that the West Coast, Baja, California, Oregon, Washington State and the West end of Canada, and I believe also Alaska, have multiple faults and most are closely adjacent to one another and form the Ring of Fire that is made up of Earthquake faults and Volcanoes, which basically are set off by seismic activity, and a really big quake, like what you pointed out as 9+ magnitude, could potentially cause the other faults to shift their plates and trigger earthquakes. It would just take a really strong quake on a major fault line like Cascadia or the San Andreas to cause that chain reaction that would impact the entire West Coast.
Sounds science fiction, but that's what has come from the seismic geologists.
The only thing is that while their theory is possible, they can't predict when. A major earthquake in the San Andreas is supposedly every 50 years, but the Big One has been "overdue" I believe like over 20 years. So, they have their scientific theories but not conclusive because as of yet, they haven't come up with the technology that can accurately predict when an earthquake will happen.

 

[Andy C]

That's true about the Cascadia fault line. Where the potential catastrophe exists is that the West Coast, Baja, California, Oregon, Washington State and the West end of Canada, and I believe also Alaska, have multiple faults and most are closely adjacent to one another and form the Ring of Fire that is made up of Earthquake faults and Volcanoes, which basically are set off by seismic activity, and a really big quake, like what you pointed out as 9+ magnitude, could potentially cause the other faults to shift their plates and trigger earthquakes. It would just take a really strong quake on a major fault line like Cascadia or the San Andreas to cause that chain reaction that would impact the entire West Coast.
Sounds science fiction, but that's what has come from the seismic geologists.
The only thing is that while their theory is possible, they can't predict when. A major earthquake in the San Andreas is supposedly every 50 years, but the Big One has been "overdue" I believe like over 20 years. So, they have their scientific theories but not conclusive because as of yet, they haven't come up with the technology that can accurately predict when an earthquake will happen.

Subduction fault lines are whats capable of causing the biggest earthquakes. Last time Cascadia struck was 1700. Supposedly, based on the 8 times records show it has ruptured, we are decades overdue for the next one. Hopefully, when it does happen, it wont be the entire fault line at once, which would then still likely be a 7.5-8.0. However, the earth will likely be renewed by then, people long gone, either enjoying eternity or suffering.

 

[Tall Timbers]

I do have a strong feeling that at some future point in time the west coast is going to get their wake up call in a major way. Just hope many do wake up when it comes because if they don't the next one will be even worse.

I grew up in SoCal and they've been talking about the "Big One" as long as I've been alive so while the "wolf cry" now puts me to sleep I reckon a big one that causes a lot of destruction is possible, and during Tribulation there's going to be massive death and destruction from several different things.

 

[Tall Timbers]

What I worry about is the Cascadia Subduction Zone which is capable of a 9.5 if the entire fault goes at once which ranges from No Cal, all the way up the coast to southern Wash state.

Now that would be a biggie.

 

[Tall Timbers]

but the Big One has been "overdue" I believe like over 20 years.

More like 70 or 80 years. They've been calling the big one in California due as long as I've been alive and probably longer.

In 2002 we had a 7.9 in Fairbanks but due to factors like depth and whatnot there wasn't much damage.

 

[1LoverofGod]

I grew up in SoCal and they've been talking about the "Big One" as long as I've been alive so while the "wolf cry" now puts me to sleep I reckon a big one that causes a lot of destruction is possible, and during Tribulation there's going to be massive death and destruction from several different things.

I agree.
Certainly the Seventh Trumpet Judgement will bring a massive earthquake that will topple cities, mountains will fall and Islands will disappear. That will be The Big One.

 

[Tall Timbers]

I agree.
Certainly the Seventh Trumpet Judgement will bring a massive earthquake that will topple cities, mountains will fall and Islands will disappear. That will be The Big One.

Amen. If there are any big ones before that they'll be considered puny compared to the one that comes wiith the seventh trumpet judgment.

 

[Shinobi]

From what I researched, its more likely an 8.0-8.3, still, incredibly strong.

What I worry about is the Cascadia Subduction Zone which is capable of a 9.5 if the entire fault goes at once which ranges from No Cal, all the way up the coast to southern Wash state.

The subduction zone runs from Cape Mendocino where the 7 pointer hit all the way past Vancover Island to a half way point between Moresby Island and Vancouver Island. Now the problem they have is knowing if the entire fault will rip or just parts of it. If the whole thing rips it is bad for three states in the US and BC in Canada. If parts of it rip but not all then tsunami problems will be a lot less depending on where the various epicenters are located. A full rip is bad for everyone along the Pacifice from Alaska on down to Japan on the west side and down the west coast to Mexico on the east side.

It may seem like it is crying wolf but we have to remember we are dealing with the geological time clock which covers centuries of time way longer than human life spans. So for those that are lucky enough to live out their entire lives and not face that they are the fortunate ones.

 

[Tall Timbers]

It may seem like it is crying wolf

The Fault isn't crying wolf but the "experts" have been.

 

[Shinobi]

The Fault isn't crying wolf but the "experts" have been.

I wouldn't fault(no pun intended) them so much. They don't have a whole lot to go on since we can see inside the planet where plates meet miles below the surface and interact with the mantle. Ultimately the most solid evidence they have is the historical record of quake activity which by all accounts has never shown a solid and repeated pattern. They cry wolf to wake people up because otherwise people prefer to be sleeping sheep when it comes to matters of natural disasters. We know more about observable space than we do about what is deep in the ocean and beneath the crustal plates of the planet. So a lot of speculation comes into play based one what little knowledge is available and by applying basic physics as known such as thermodynamics, fluid dynamics of molten rock, geomagnetic instnaces associated with geological activity like lighten bolts in the large smoke plumes of volcanoes or the changes in geomagnetic readings around areas of quake activity just prior to and after quakes hit. At best such studies are still in their infancy so not a lot is well known yet. They do the best they can. Yeah some are arrogant and self righteous but a lot of them are really trying hard to understand the world God gave us and how it works.

 

[Ghoti Ichthus]

And what happens if everything goes together or like dominoes?

 

[Shinobi]

And what happens if everything goes together or like dominoes?

That is a possiblity. Best they know is a place in Japan that has a fault that essentially is three segments. Quakes can be on one to all three or some variation on 2. Depends on the magnitude of course but if like in the past all three go at once and it is strong it sends out a huge tsunami. The megathrust as they call it for the west coast of California, Oregon, and Washington would be similar. If the whole of the fault rips it will send out a tsunami from the Russia/ Alaska region around the western Pacific that could impact many of the southern Islands. Something not seen often. As for the west coast everything from BC, Canada down to Baja California could see a lot of significant height wave damage upwards of a mile inland or so depending if it is a slow slope up from the shore. Any low lying shore areas are likely to be toast from the flooding. The closer to and along the strike area will definitely be washed out very badly.

From Historical records in the geology of the Washington coast the 1700 quake sent water inland in Washington well over a mile in some places. It so inundated the coast lands there is a place now called the dead forest. It is a stand of dead trees that died from all the salt water that saturated the land. Then there are sediment deposits that show in some places upwards 2 feet of sand and silt from the ocean floor was deposited as well.

What is being expected is what happened in 1700. From the information gathered the tsunami that reached Japan and its height level how far they traced the tsunami effects in parts of the Washinton coast as well as some places in Oregon they estimate it was around 9.3 and fairly shallow. Historical verbal records from the natives of that time passed down through the years indicate it was felt well inland to the foot hills of the Cascades which includes places like Vancouver in BC, Everett, Seattle, Olympia in Washington as well as Portland in Oregon.The good thing then was not high rise building are man made road structures like bridges to collapse or be severely damaged. If another 9.0 or higher were to rip down the coast all the cities I listed as well as smaller towns along the I5 corridor will be severely damaged, buildings, roads, power supply, water, etc. We are talking about an area that is hundreds of miles long along the I5 corridor. Recovery from that will take not years but a decade or more. Travel will be impossible over land except if you have 4 wheelers and even then there will be other problems like subsequent land slides from steep hill sides onto roads as well as over other low lying areas people might try to use for leaving. Recovery will require air lift of people and supplies to start and later via water ways such as Puget Sound. If it hits in the winter exiting the area will be very hard because of snow in the mountain passes as well as snow avalanches blocking roads.

Of course this is a worse case scenario and a quake of lessor degree and affecting less of the plate boundary of shore will do a lot less damage. But the expectancy is that because quakes are rare in the PNW area of significant magnitude those that are large when they happen are larger than most because of years of pent up energy that will be released all at once. That is a reasonable expectation given what they know at this time about the area. And like anything always best to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. So the push will always be that when it comes it will be really bad. Sadly too many new people have moved into the area in the past few decades from parts of the country that have never experienced a quake. Even when the Nisqually quake hit near Tacoma in 2001 locals who never felt a quake were freaking out and it was only a 6.8 one that does some but limited damage some minimal structure damage lost bricks on the face of some older buildings but now major road problems, no loss of power. The only thing that went down hard and fast was cell service as it got clogged within 5 minutes of the quake movement ending. I saw it coming so I got my call to my wife well before others realized they needed to check on family. So I was good to go but some people in my office did not reach their families till the next day when things settled down. The bigges problem was the level of confusion because unlike southern California that feels quakes on a some what regular basis, those felt in Washington and Oregon come over many decades apart so people forget or were not around when the previous ones hit. There are now young adults that were born after the Nisqually quake that have no idea what may come to our area and they are not all prepared as most people are not. Some are but they are thinking less severe so not prepared enough for a long term event.

So basically any where from the north end of the Juan de Fuca plate to the southern end where they recent 7.0 hit could rip and would likely lifet some inches to a foot and move west from a half a foot to a foot and half westward. That would be a very strong quake if the entierty gives way. If only parts give way then not as strong but still bad enough to trigger a tsunami that will wipe out a lot of the coastal towns. How much infrastructure gets damage further inland will depend on the magnitude and the duration of movement. None of that can be predicted so it best guestimates as to what will happen when it happens.

 

[Shinobi]

And what happens if everything goes together or like dominoes?

I forgot to mention the domino effect. That is possible as there are some smaller faults further inland like one that runs through the south end of down town Seattle that could be triggered. Another larger one runs from the foot hills due east of the Seattle area on a NW diagonal that runs through Whidbey Island out in to the Strait of Juan de Fuca as well as many other smaller and moderate size ones. Any of those could be triggered by the movement brought on by a megathrust quake off shore. they are likely to show up later as after shocks which will make what initial damage worse as most things will already be broken and crumbling and weak. Such after shocks can show up for years after a major quakes so any recovery could be hampered by those late coming after shocks. Life in quake country is a gamble but then so it is in hurricane country, tornado country, in flood prone country, and norther blizzard country. No place is safe except in the arms of Jesus.

 

[Bethlehem57]

HUMBOLDT COUNTY – A large earthquake has just struck off the coast of Humboldt County on Thursday morning, prompting a tsunami warning.

According to the US Geological Survey, the quake struck around 10:44 a.m., west of Petrolia, California in the Pacific Ocean. A Tsunami Warning has been issued for 45 miles southwest of Eureka.

The earthquake had been registered preliminarily as having a magnitude of 6.6, but USGS updated it 7.0.

The earthquake had been registered preliminarily as having a magnitude of 6.6, but USGS updated it 7.0.

More

7.0 earthquake hits off Northern California coast; tsunami warning canceled

A large, 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Humboldt County on Thursday morning.

www.cbsnews.com

Grew up near Eureka in a town called Fortuna. Earthquakes are pretty scary, even though they don’t last very long, it makes you wonder if they’ll stop during one.

This fault line sits that goes through here is where some “genius” decided to build a nuclear power plant. Called the “Humboldt Bay Nuclear Power Plant,” it’s owned by PG&E and the government site doesn’t say whether or not it’s been decommissioned. You can’t make this stuff up.