As quakes rattle SoCal, residents reminded: you’re on your own
EMERGENCY PREP
On Aug. 12, a 4.4 magnitude earthquake jolted the Los Angeles area as part of a broader trend of increased seismic activity in Southern California. The trend is likely to continue, according to KTLA 5.
“2024 has had more earthquakes than any year we’ve seen since 1988,” Dr. Lucy Jones, a geophysicist and researcher at Caltech, said in an interview on KTLA 5 Morning News.
In Leisure World, residents are reminded that, in the case of an emergency, You’re On Your Own. Each shareholder must plan for and prepare for his or her own safety in the face of an earthquake, wildfire, flood or tsunami. Utilities may be out, phone lines down, water systems and transportation out of commission, while emergency personnel is short-handed.
Since 1932, Southern California has averaged 10 to 12 earthquakes of magnitude 4.0 or greater per year. However, Jones noted that the past 20 years have seen an average of just five such quakes annually.
Last week’s quakes originated from the Puente Hills thrust fault system, a complex web of buried faults that seismologists say is far more dangerous than the famous San Andreas Fault because of its proximity to highly populated areas.
The San Andreas Fault runs mostly beneath remote deserts and mountains, but is capable of a larger jolt, the long-anticipated “Big One.”
Here are a few ways to get involved in disaster preparedness and response in Leisure World:
• Sign up for the Sept. 18 Boots on The Ground training, which brings together residents with unique skills and resources and plans for how they’ll assist in disaster situations. See page 17.
• Attend a meeting of the LW Community Emergency Response Team. See page 16.
• Attend a meeting of the Emergency Information Council, a nonprofit that provides information about emergency management and response. For more information, visit https:// eiclwsb.org/about/.
• Attend LW’s annual Emergency Preparedness Expo in October.
• Organize or attend a drill for the Great California Shake-Out on Oct. 17, a drill practiced across California where people in seismically active regions practice what to do during a quake: drop, cover and hold on.
