VANCOUVER — San Francisco was struck by a 6.0 magnitude earthquake today at 3:20 a.m., the strongest to hit the area in 25 years. Three people were critically injured, 15,000 lost power and at least a dozen buildings crumbled, prompting California’s governor Jerry Brown to declare a state of emergency.
The disaster down south reminds British Columbians to be prepared. Just this weekend, emergency officials staged a mock disaster to prepare volunteers to deal with the aftermath should an earthquake happen here.
However, Brent Ward, an earth sciences professor at Simon Fraser University says the tremors in San Francisco were not similar to ones normally experienced in BC.
“This happened directly underneath where people lived, it’s also at a very shallow depth. It’s only 10 kilometres. Whereas our quakes are usually either off shore or fairly deep and underneath parts of British Columbia that aren’t as populated,” Ward told Global News.
Regardless, experts recommend people keep a three-day supply of water, food and safety gear nearby at all times.
–With files from Tanya Beja.
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