California Earthquake Prediction: Los Angeles Not Only City In Danger Of Large Quake


A California earthquake prediction points to an event even more dire than the 5.1 quake that shook Los Angeles on Friday, with seismologists saying a devastating earthquake could be on the way.

The 5.1 magnitude earthquake that struck Los Angeles on Friday evening caused scattered damage around Southern California, including water main breaks and shattered glass. It also led to hundreds of aftershocks, the strongest being a 4.4 magnitude earthquake that struck on Saturday.

But some seismologists are offering a more dire California earthquake prediction, saying the Los Angeles quake may have actually been a foreshock of a much larger tremor.

“There could be even a larger earthquake in the next few hours or the next few days,” said U.S. Geological Survey seismologist Lucy Jones.

Jones added that there is a roughly 5 percent chance of a larger quake striking, but other seismologists have made a much more dire California earthquake prediction.

In a study published last year, scientists said that if a 9.0 earthquake were to strike along the state’s northern coast it could kill tens of thousands of people and cause $70 billion in damage.

The northern region of California is home to a dangerous fault line known as the Cascadia subduction zone. While not as famous as southern California’s San Andreas fault, this zone may have a much more dangerous potential, seismologists say.

“Katrina was a worst case scenario for hurricanes in the gulf. And a Cascadia would be the worst case scenario for tsunamis on the West Coast,” said Paul Whitmore, director of the National Tsunami Warning Center in Alaska.Officials are taking the California earthquake prediction to heart. Across the northern part of California and in southern Oregon local authorities are beefing up emergency response systems and researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are working on a more accurate and timely tsunami detection system.
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