Anna Odell
Social Media Manager
At 3:53 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 6, I was peacefully enjoying my slumber after a long but fun night out when a strange yet familiar sensation suddenly yanked me from my REM sleep. My confusion lasted only a millisecond before I realized what had awoken me: an earthquake.
As a lifelong California resident, I’ve experienced many earthquakes, most of which I did not even notice, let alone care about. But the moment an earthquake hits above 4.0 on the Richter scale, my internal alarm goes on high alert. So, as you can imagine, being woken up for the first time in years by the ground shaking — causing my bed to sway and my precious Sonny Angels to topple off my desk — left me panicked.
All natural disasters are frightening. I, for one, know I wouldn’t last a day in a state that experiences tornadoes as their signature disaster. Even though I’ve experienced dozens, earthquakes will always take the cake for me. Hurricanes, tornadoes, and even fires, to some extent, can be predicted or at least prepared for. With earthquakes, you really get no warning. If one happens, you’d better have good self-preservation skills because it’s really every man for himself.
For out-of-state students, feeling an earthquake for the first time — no matter the size — can be jarring or confusing.
“I honestly didn’t know what to expect, but also, when I experienced my first earthquake, I didn’t even realize it was happening until it was over,” Adriana Apana PO ’27 said. “It was so quick that I didn’t even know if what I felt was an earthquake until I saw other people going around being like ‘omg, did you feel that?’”
Chloe Heath ’27 added about the brevity of these natural disasters. “I’ve only felt an earthquake once before, and it was so small that I didn’t even really know it was happening in the moment,” Heath said. “I felt a little bit of a shake, but I thought my friend had accidentally kicked my chair. This recent earthquake was noticeable, though and woke me up. It felt completely different than anything else I’ve ever felt before which did freak me out.”
For Californians, earthquakes are hardly unfamiliar. Dozens hit our state every day, most of which go unfelt. To prepare us, schools have students perform earthquake drills every year from kindergarten through 12th grade, just in case a big one strikes while high school students are dozing off in pre-calc.
While most quakes are inconsequential, one ominous scientific speculation looms over us: the “Big One.” According to experts, California is long overdue for a 7.8+ magnitude event that could cause billions of dollars in damage. Although our infrastructure is designed to handle many earthquakes, one of this magnitude would be devastating. My Sonny Angels wouldn’t just fall off my desk; they’d likely be flattened if the ceiling caved in.
Now, I am an openly very anxious person, but I’m sure many of my peers share this fear. Every time a quake is strong enough to remind me of the inevitability of a 7.8+ earthquake, I feel that familiar sense of dread — especially knowing that every whole number increase on the Richter scale means the quake is 10 times more severe. So, you can imagine how much worse my anxiety got knowing that the Oct. 6 quake was about 40 times less intense than the Big One. And to make matters worse, scientists predict this major quake will happen before 2030.
“It’s scary to think about how a catastrophic earthquake could happen at any moment,” Heath said. “Until moving here I had never had to think or worry about it but now I sometimes remember the possibility that the San Andreas Fault could rupture. It’s terrifying to think about the death and damage something like that would cause.”
I can’t speak for everyone, but this knowledge is terrifying for me. For those of us in-state students who are occasionally gripped by fear, it’s often easier to ignore the inevitability of the Big One or live in denial that it will ever happen.
“To be honest, I don’t think the Big One is coming anytime soon — at least, I hope not,” Chloe Choi ’27 shared. “I’d imagine it would only be considered a ‘big one’ if it’s at least a 7.5. They didn’t even count the 2019 earthquakes as a Big One. I guess I’m afraid, but it’s hard to imagine, so not really. Hopefully, I’ll be out of the country!”
Choi is certainly braver than I am, and while she seemed relatively unfazed by our recent quake, we both share a fear of a substantial earthquake. I sure hope I’m out of the country, too!
I strongly urge all California residents to protect our peace and simply live in denial. And to all of my out-of-state friends, please take me home with you!
