Napa quake spotlights similar danger in Oregon

The 6.0-magnitude earthquake in Northern California early Sunday shook even earthquake-prone Californians to their core.

“Everyone said it’s the scariest thing they’ve ever experienced,” Bend resident Sarah Lauderdale, who has family in the Napa region, said Monday. “My friend’s mother broke her shoulder. There’s lots of damage in the house and outside the house.”

“Everyone’s kitchen was just thrown to pieces and my grandfather’s chimney fell to the ground,” said Bend resident Jeanette King, who also has friends and family in the region.

King was in Burlingame, Calif., not that far away, and woke up to the earthquake. “It felt like a shaking,” said King. “I woke up and everything was still shaking.”

Experts offer a familiar reminder: Oregon is also prone to earthquakes.

“There’s dozens, probably hundreds of faults in Oregon that could produce earthquakes,” said Ian Madin, chief scientist with the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries. “They don’t produce them as frequently as in California or Washington, but the risk is still there all the time.”

The federal government recently released an updated earthquake map, showing which regions could expect quakes within the next 50 years. Oregon is also affected.

While a major earthquake in Central Oregon is not very likely, experts’ biggest concern is the fault line off the coast, called the Cascadia subduction zone, which could produce a catastrophic 9.0-magnitude earthquake — as it did a few centuries ago – a relative blink, in geologic time.

“It would cause damage throughout the Willamette Valley I-5 corridor area. It would cause horrendous damage on the coast and minor damage as far east as Bend,” Madin said.

Madin also reminds everyone to always be prepared for any kind of natural disaster. Experts say you should have a disaster kit so you can be self-sufficient for at least 72 hours after an earthquake.

For more information you can check the Red Cross’ website for a full list: http://www.redcross.org/prepare/disaster/earthquake