Hundreds of earthquakes occur every year, and in recent weeks, California has been affected by several. Already, 13 earthquakes with magnitudes over 4.0 have been recorded as of mid-August, which signifies the pattern of rumbles will continue. Just last month, on August 12th, an earthquake with a magnitude of 4.4 occurred in South Pasadena. Another earthquake on September 7th, with a magnitude of 3.9, shook the ground just four miles from Ontario. Freshman Avery Kurera was eating fruit when she sensed that something was wrong.
“I didn’t feel it, but I heard it,” Kurera said. “All my pets stood up and my sister, who was sitting on the couch, looked up. I got messages from friends asking if I felt the little shake.”
It is not shocking to experience an earthquake, but experts worry about the extremity of upcoming shakes. Usually, California does not experience nearly the number of earthquakes. Earthquakes can cause a lot of damage, specifically to infrastructure and other landscapes that are fragile. For example, in 2019, an earthquake of 7.1 magnitude occurred just 11 miles northeast of the city of Ridgecrest. This led to small fires, cracks in buildings and roads, and power outages. It is not clear if this type of destruction will happen again, but there is a sequence that people can look for. Dr. Lucy Jones from CBS News explains that there are ongoing earthquakes along the Puente Hills thrust fault.
The rate of earthquakes has become more frequent, to the point where they happen back-to-back. For example, a temblor, also known as an earthquake, transpired north of Malibu, California on September 12th, with a magnitude of 4.7. Just the next day, an aftershock with a magnitude of 3.4 hit Claremont, shaking schools early in the morning.
Many drills are practiced at CHS and other CUSD schools, but the question of whether more drills are necessary pops up. For example, The Great ShakeOut is an annual earthquake drill that school’s worldwide practice. This organization was first started by scientists who felt people are not aware of the dangers of earthquakes. In hopes of spreading awareness about the catastrophic risks, the scientists created this annual event. Students like Siri Lackey, feel the need to have more safety practices with earthquakes.
“I think it would be nice if they did drills where maybe they explain in depth more about earthquakes and what damage they actually do,” Lackey said. “More frequent earthquake drills and informing more people about earthquakes, even if it is not a full-on drill, like maybe in certain classes talking about them would be good.”
Although the concerns of these jolts are not too serious, it is important to stay alert. For now, the earthquake season is in place and expected to continue. So CHS students should be aware and get ready to rumble.