Hi Petra. Some of the people I have talked to about earthquakes have told me they know that one day there will be a major quake, but they don't worry about it because there is nothing they can do to prevent it. They are more concerned about driving down highway 25 which has claimed more lives in our area then any earthquake that has centered near there.

I point out to them that the idea of preparing for a major quake is not trying to prevent it, but to keep from becoming a victim through ignorance. When you survive the quake proper are you prepared to survive the aftermath? What you do before the quake will increase your ability to cope with the problems that are sure to arise after the quake and not to count on the government to help for the first 72 hours, maybe even longer.

One of the things that tickled me was when a mayor of San Francisco was asked if they were prepared for a major quake and the fires that were sure to follow. He said that would have mutual aid from neighboring cities. The Loma Prieta quake proved him wrong. The mutual aid was not forth coming until as such time as they had there own areas of responsibilities taken care of.

One of the worst case scenarios I can thing of would be a quake in LA proper on one of the thrust faults. Even if mutual aid were available would it be able to get there and when they arrived would there be the needed materials to work with such as water, gas, electricity and hospitals in working order?

In my humble opinion the quakes we have seen in the last 20 or so years have not been major quakes. Maybe they weren't a major quake because of the building codes we have, or they weren't in the right area, or they didn't last long enough, or they didn't occur at the right time, or maybe they needed to be just a bit stronger.

The Kobe quake of 1995 was a major quake and from everything I have learned about the reason for it being a major quake was that the people put to much reliance in government to warn them about it before it struck. One of the chief complaints from the people was the inability of the fire departments ability to fight the fires. One of the main reasons was that the streets were made impassable because of the ruins of fallen buildings. The second was the lack of water. LA proper can be a victim for almost the same reasons.

Surviving a quake has to start with the people because there is no assurance that the infrastructure needed to assist the quake will survive the quake.

Speaking of surviving I hope you survive the trip to Mammoth Lakes as well as you did the one to Parkfield. You didn't yell at me more then two maybe three, or maybe if was four times. Not really sure as I don't keep count. At any rate I got us there and back in one piece. Meaning I still had my head attached to my shoulders. Take Care…Don in creepy town