The Big One: We're Screwed!
An article in today's Chronicle describes the next major earthquake on the Hayward Fault as "inevitable" and declares that it will be "our Katrina." Yeesh. Experts estimate that the shaking alone will directly affect 5 million people and that if fires were to break out like they did in 1906, the number will be much higher. In case you want to mark your calendar, records show that a major earthquake has struck the Hayward Fault every 140 years between 1315 and 1868. The 140th anniversary of the last quake falls on Oct. 21 of this year. Are you one of those lucky San Franciscans who lives in a house with a garage? You're double screwed. Houses with garages are called "soft story buildings" because of the propensity for their heavier top floors to collapse into the ones underneath. Also, nobody has earthquake insurance and all our streets will drop into the ocean. -Andy Wright
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