Earthquake Advisory issued for Southern California

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The Office of Emergency Services issued an Earthquake Advisory for Southern California after a swarm of more than 1,000 quakes rocked the area around the Salton Sea earlier this week.

According to the warning, “The council concluded that stresses associated with this recent earthquake swarm may slightly increase the probability between 0.03 percent and 1.0 percent of an additional earthquake as large, or larger, than the September 26 magnitude 4.3 occurring over the next week.”

OES Director Director Mark Ghilarducci asked the California Earthquake Prediction Evaluation Council (CEPEC), “… to convene on Tuesday morning to discuss and evaluate a sequence of small earthquakes that have occurred about 10 kilometers southwest of Bombay Beach, Salton Sea area. CEPEC is a committee of earthquake experts that reviews potentially credible earthquake forecasts and advises the Director using their best judgement.”

At this time earthquakes can’t be accurately predicted, but experts can advise on the potential based on real time data collected during such events as the earthquake swarm .

Ghilarducci also reminded coastal residents to be aware of the quakes and the possibility of tsunamis that can follow earthquakes. Tsunamis can occur with little warning, giving people in the coastal areas mere minutes to evacuate.

This advisory includes the counties of Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, San Bernardino, Riverside, Kern and Imperial. It may also affect portions of Arizona and Southern Nevada.

The OES suggests creating a disaster supply kit in the event of an emergency. You should have food, water and other supplies to last for 72 hours (three days) and you should be prepared for all utilities — including sewage treatment — to be disrupted for up to a week. Yep, your toilet may not be of any use after an earthquake or other emergency.

Having a disaster supply kit — a “Go Bag” — only seems like silly “the sky is falling” nonsense, until an emergency hits. For more information, click here.