“The Great:” How could it affect the Central Coast?

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Sophie Lincoln reports from KCBX.

It’s been more than 100 years since the 1906 earthquake that caused massive damage to San Francisco. Since then, Californians have long expected another ‘Big One’ to crash along the San Andreas Fault.

Based on seismic history and current data about the earthquake cycle, the next ‘Big One’ is widely expected to hit southern California.

Although the San Andreas Fault does not pass through San Luis Obispo County, it is close enough that a large-scale earthquake causes damage to San Luis Obispo and the Central Coast.

According to Cal Poly University geology professor John Gaspincik, because earthquakes do not follow a strict cycle, it is difficult to predict exactly when an earthquake will occur.

Ancient seismologists assumed that the next “larger” along the San Andreas Fault would have a magnitude of about 7 or 7.5, which is just below the 7.9 magnitude San Francisco earthquake of 1906, Jabincic said.

“It will continue to be a devastating event, in the southern part of the San Andreas Fault,” Jaspensik said.

Of course, local damage will depend on the epicenter. In the event of an earthquake in the Gulf region, the effects on the central coast would be smaller, but if it occurred in the central valley, the effects could be much greater.

Regarding the potential damage of this hypothetical earthquake, Cal Poly University geotechnical engineering professor Rob Moss said that ground damage, liquefaction and power outages are among the potential effects of such a large earthquake.

Liquefaction indicates that the solid ground becomes more fluid due to the stress caused by ground acceleration during an earthquake.

According to Moss, the Central Coast and California in general have strict building codes intended to prevent avalanches during an earthquake.

“In California, we have the best building codes in the world. And it’s twofold. You have to have building codes, and you have to have enforcement,” Moss said. , and then personal responsibility and reflection.”

Besides building codes, San Luis Obispo County has a contingency plan.

But, Scott Galbert, director of emergency services for San Luis Obispo County, said it would take about 72 hours for regional, federal and state assistance to arrive after the earthquake.

“Perhaps the most important thing is that citizens need to know that they may be on their own for up to three days and that they need to be prepared,” Galbert said.

Other actions the county has taken to prepare include identifying target risks and key infrastructure and making sure hospitals have generators back up.

Cal Poly also has its own Director of Emergency Management, Anthony Knight, who is responsible for planning, preparing, communicating, and responding to all risks that may affect the campus community.

“We need to do risk assessments and risk exposure assessments to identify the threats that we face here at Cal Poly, one of those threats being earthquake,” Knight said. “In California, it’s one of our main seasons – fires, floods, winds, earthquakes.”

Cal Poly has its own emergency operations plan, measures and preparation information can also be found online at Emergency.calpoly.edu

Knight advises preparing by stocking up on water and food because earthquakes can disrupt power and water lines.

To prepare your earthquake emergency kit, visit the San Luis Obispo County Preparedness Site.

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