My name is Diane and I have several questions regarding earthquakes and earthquake preparedness. My interest relates in being as prepared as I can be to protect my family. I became alerted to earthquake danger with the KB prediction last year. I am particularly concerned because:

1) I have three small children (4 year old triplets) with asthma
2) I live in an area with extremely high fire danger
3) Our home could very easily become non-accessible to emergency aid – all roads off the mountain were closed an extended period due to rain this past winter (We had gotten off the mountain during a break in the storm a day before the roads closed. My daughter ended up in the hospital with pneumonia the following day – we would have had to be airlifted out during the torrential rains)
4) Our family evacuated twice already due to two separate fires in the 2003 firestorms

I want to know the worst case scenario and be prepared without being overly paranoid about our situation. I know what to do in the case of fire. I know what to do in case of blizzard or rain. I am prepared to be evacuated in-situ (I think that is the correct term). I don’t know what to expect with an earthquake other than lots of shaking and we need to duck and cover.

We live in Lake Arrowhead, just above San Bernardino, near the junction of the San Jacinto, San Andreas, Cucamonga and the North Frontal Fault Zone (Cajon Pass). In the case of a devastating earthquake, I expect the roads off the mountain to be shut down. Hopefully, it will not occur during a Santa Ana wind condition. What are the chances of such an earthquake? How bad will the damages be? Our house is 6 years old and supposedly structurally engineered by one of the better structural engineers up here. Should I prepare mentally for the house collapsing or simply being severely damaged – plaster damage, roof damage, furniture flying about? My insurance company (State Farm) says that my insurance is relatively cheap because I live in an area less likely to be hit than say, Northridge area or Palm Springs. My agent said the insurance underwriters are particularly worried about Pasadena (Sierra Madre Fault) and Newport Beach/Orange County (Laguna Salida Fault?) down thru Palm Springs. What is your opinion? How much earthquake insurance should I be looking at? How should I prepare my children?

This email is long enough so I will stop writing and patiently await your responses. Thank you in advance.