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San Francisco Earthquake History 1990-1994
January 1, 1990
5K race to benefit those left homeless by the earthquake.
January 22, 1990
Hotel managers said conventioneers have returned but tourists were staying
away. Convention and Visitors Bureau spokeswoman Sharon Rooney said lingering
images of the earthquake fire and rubble were still scaring away vacationers.
"I think people do not realize that the Wharf and the Marina are not the same thing," said
Bob Darchi, of the Fisherman's Wharf Marriott. He said many potential
visitors, especially from overseas, assumed the television pictures they
remember of collapsed and burning buildings in the Marina District
meant the whole city was in flames.
January 23, 1990
Voters will be asked in June to approve the biggest bond issue in city
history, $332.4 million, for repairing buildings and pipelines damaged by the
earthquake.
February 2, 1990
State Senate committee hearings at the Gov. Edmund G. "Pat" Brown
State Building on Van Ness
Avenue to determine impact of 1989 earthquake on
utilities.
February 5, 1990
Mayor Agnos and Rose Pak, Chairwoman of the San Francisco-Taipei Sister
City Committee, accepted a $100,000 contribution for earthquake relief from
the city of Taipei.
The ceremony and reception were held at the St. Francis hotel on the 20th
anniversary of the San Francisco-Taipei sister city program.
February 8, 1990
Gov. Deukmejian agreed to place bonds for $300 million for earthquake
retrofitting for public buildings on the June ballot.
February 12, 1990
Mayor Agnos demanded "a full, unadulterated public accounting" of
Red Cross donations earmarked for earthquake relief. The Red Cross scandal
was exposed by the San Francisco
Examiner which charged that the agency collected more than $52
million, but spent just over $12 million on quake relief. Red Cross officials
had previously said they collected only $26 million, but today admitted to a
$52.5 million figure.
February 16, 1990
House Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs subcommittee hearings
on earthquake hazard mitigation and earthquake insurance in San Francisco.
February 20, 1990
Red Cross will spend $40 million dollars to support continuing aid for quake
victims and for earthquake preparedness. The announcement came after
scorching criticism of the relief agency which spent about $13 million of the
more than $52 million it had collected for California relief. Red Cross had intended
to use monies collected for California
relief for other disasters.
February 21, 1990
San Francisco
Fire Fighters' Union Local 798 presented more than 70,000 signatures to the
Registrar of Voters to quality a measure on the ballot to increase the number
of firefighters on duty. Union President Jim Ferguson said the earthquake and
"the havoc it wrought showed just how thin our forces have been spread
since the budget cuts."
February 23, 1990
FEMA will spend unlimited funds to rebuild San Francisco housing destroyed by the
earthquake. The announcement came following a lawsuit brought against the
beleaguered agency by lawyers for the poor.
President Bush today praised the Red Cross for mobilizing
assistance in San Francisco
for the earthquake.
February 26, 1990
Red Cross set March 2 as the deadline for proposals to spend $10 million set
aside from the earthquake relief fund. The agency's actions followed the
revelation of the relief fund scandal and the demand by Mayor Agnos that the
fund be audited. The agency intended to keep the additional $30 million left
over from donations sent for quake victims.
Room rates at San
Francisco hotels were slashed 20 to 40 percent
because of tourists' fears of another major earthquake. Room occupancy
dropped to 70 percent.
The Examiner revealed a Caltrans contractor
scandal. The newspaper reported that Assemblyman Richard Polanco of Los Angeles placed calls to Caltrans officials in an
attempt to get contracts for the J.C. Pride construction company for San Francisco
earthquake repairs. The company had contributed to his election campaign.
February 28, 1990
Conference called When the Ground Shakes: Policies for Survival in Earthquake
Country held at the Marriott at 777
Market St.
Upland, 40 miles east of Los Angeles, was badly shaken by
an earthquake. Other cities that suffered damage were Claremont,
La Verne and Pomona. State Bar exams at the Pomona Fairgrounds were
interrupted by the 5.5 earthquake. 800 law students evacuated two buildings
after the temor.
March 1, 1990
San Francisco SPCA reported weird animal behavior before the 1989 earthquake.
The SPCA said at the Lindsay Museum in Walnut
Creek snakes were coiling, hissing, shaking their
tails and striking just before the earthquake struck.
March 3, 1990
Assembly Speaker Willie Brown announced the appointment of a permanent
Assembly Committee on Earthquake Preparedness and Natural Disasters to be
chaired by Assemblyman Rusy Areias of Los Banos. The speaker announced his
move during a statewide radio speech.
March 5, 1990
Scientists in Southern California
issued vaguely worded earthquake advisory because of a 5.5 tremor last
Wednesday. Michael Guerin, Deputy Director of State OES said, "Right now
in this branch of science, vague is state-of-the-art."
March 8, 1990
Planning Commission gave approval for the demolition of People's Temple. Demolition
ordered after one wall of the structure collapsed during the earthquake. It
was the former Albert Pike Memorial that was badly damaged in the 1906
disaster.
Radio transmissions from Highway Patrol cruisers in San Francisco were heard clearly in North Carolina and interfered with the
highway patrol there. "It's been booming in here for the past few weeks,
said Sgt. A.C. Joyner of the Henderson
N.C. detachment. "We hear
them talking about everything from the earthquake to holdups, shootings,
whatever. Sometimes it's pretty entertaining."
March 9, 1990
Gov. Deukmejian declared a state of emergency in Los
Angeles because of the Feb. 28 earthquake that caused $15 million
damage to several communities in the foothills of the San
Gabriel Mountains.
March 14, 1990
A big sinkhole caused the roadway of the Embarcadero to collapse during rush
hour near the Ferry
Building. There have
been frequent water and sewer main breaks since the earthquake. This hole
measured 12 by 15 feet and was several feet deep.
March 15, 1990
KCBS-AM and KGO-TV won Peabody
Awards for earthquake coverage.
March 23, 1990
Red Cross in Philadelphia announced that the
Northern California Red Cross Relief Committee would fund $33.8 million for
earthquake relief programs in 7 northern California counties.
March 31, 1990
President Bush spoke at the Gridiron Club dinner in Washington and imitated comedians
who impersonated him. "San Francisco earthquake," said the
President, "not my fault. San Andreas Fault." Several reporters
dressed as broccoli florets for the event.
April 2, 1990
Four-alarm fire burned through the four-story building at Sixth and Bluxome
that partially collapsed during the earthquake and killed six people.
April 5, 1990
FEMA said no more application for earthquake assistance would be taken after
April 21. To date, 80,584 applications have been accepted.
April 6, 1990
Exhibition game at Candlestick between the Giants and the A's was interrupted
at 7:39 p.m. by a 4.5 earthquake. The tremor capped an afternoon swarm of
tremors that jangled nerves and tossed merchandise from shelves. The A's won
9-2.
John James McDonald, orphaned in San Francisco during the
1906 earthquake, died of injuries suffered in the 1989 tremor. He was found
injured in his Belmont apartment two days after the quake and died at the
Monterey Convalescent Hospital.
April 7, 1990
Yesterday's swarm of earthquakes continued with a 4.5 tremor at 8:39 p.m.
USGS said the earthquake was felt in large parts of the Bay Area and was the
largest of a series of quakes which began yesterday. Three of the earlier
quakes registered over magnitude 3.5.
April 13, 1990
The Oakland Tribune and San Jose Mercury won Pulitzer Prizes
for their coverage of the earthquake.
April 16, 1990
Hundreds of Chinatown merchants went on strike and closed shops for three
hours to attend Board of Supervisor's hearing on Embarcadero Freeway demolition.
Merchants claimed business in Chinatown will wither without the vital
transportation link. The Chinatown Chamber of Commerce said business was off
15 to 40 percent since the earthquake. Supervisors passed a resolution,
however, supporting Mayor Agnos' proposal for a sunken expressway along the
Embarcadero.
State OES Director Don Irwin urged Californians to
prepare for future earthquakes. Irwin said, "Each major earthquake tells
us something about what we need to change to better prepare for the next
one."
April 17, 1990
Six-month commemoration of the earthquake at the Embarcadero a few yards from
the wrecked freeway. Fire buffs displayed a 30-year-old antique fire engine
commanded by Fire Capt. Richard Bracco
for three days after the earthquake to put out fires and rescue trapped
victims. Tables were set up with earthquake preparation literature and
disaster checklists.
April 18, 1990
Magnitude-5.4 earthquake frightened younger celebrants at Lotta's Fountain as
they commemorated the 1906 disaster. 1906 survivors disaster shrugged off the
latest tremor and headed for the Golden Hydrant at 20th and Church streets
for further commemoration of the Great Earthquake and Fire. It was just one
about 100 quake shocks felt throughout the day. One house collapsed in
Watsonville from the shock, and minor power failures and rockslides were
reported.
All 44 BART trains
were halted for track inspection after today's earthquake. Service resumed
after 15 minutes.
Mayor Art Agnos
criticized scientists who said that odds were good for a major earthquake in
the next 25 years: He told Ted Koppel on ABC, "...the people who make
predictions need to make their science much more precise and then, when they
know exactly when it's going to happen tell us, because we want the
information... . I got the message. I don't need any more. Save it, and give
it to those areas where they need to have that kind of alert given to them because
they are not as experienced as we are."
April 22, 1990
Baseball Commissioner Fay Vincent, in today's "Washington Post,"
wrote a touching eulogy to San Francisco police Commander Isiah Nelson killed
two weeks ago in a motorcycle accident on the quake-wrecked Southern
Extension. He was using the closed road as a shortcut from Candlestick Park
to the Hall of Justice. Nelson was with Vincent at Candlestick Park during
the earthquake. The commissioner wrote, "He was calm, fully in charge,
crisp and incredibly helpful. I felt the loss one feels at the death of a
dear friend. I will never forget him."
April 23, 1990
Earthquake-weakened water main failed near Civic Center and created a large
hole in the street.
April 24, 1990
ABC won the 11th Annual Sports Emmy for sports journalism for its coverage of
the earthquake in San Francisco.
Moody's Investors
Service gave San Francisco "Aa" rating on the general obligation
debt of the city. San Francisco will offer bond for sale May 2. A spokesman
for Moody's said, "While the effect of last years's earthquake on both
the operating and capital budgets is significant, these projected costs
appear manageable and do not adversely affect credit quality. It is worth
noting that while San Francisco's fund balances remain minimal, the city was
able to absorb the adverse effect in the current fiscal year of both the
earthquake and continued drought without drawing on reserves."
Sears, Roebuck and
Co. reported sharply-lower first quarter earnings because of earthquake
losses by Allstate Insurance Co., a Sears subsidiary.
April 28, 1990
A swarm of earthquakes measuring 4.3 to 4.6 knocked out electricity to homes
in the Walnut Creek area. The 4.6 tremor occurred at 9:41 p.m. One of the
quakes was felt at Candlestick Park while the Giants were in the 6th inning
of a game against the St. Louis Cardinals.
June 7, 1990
Saint Rose Academy on Pine St., founded in 1862 on Brannan near 3rd, closed
its doors due to 1989 earthquake damage.
June 22, 1990
Los Angeles Sheriff Sherman Block told an earthquake preparedness hearing
chaired by Lt. Gov. Leo McCarthy that the greatest problem facing the county
in gearing for a major temblor is the notion that "we're all going to
die anyway." But he said that even "if 25,000 people should
perish" in the "Big One," the rest of the estimated 10 million
residents in the county should have emergency supplies and contingency plans
to survive the chaos that will follow.
June 30, 1990
Magnitude 4.0 earthquake felt in San Francisco at 5:36 p.m. No damage
reported. The quake was centered near San Jose on the Calaveras fault.
July 6, 1990
CHP report said the woman killed when she drove into the gap left by a fallen
section of the Bay Bridge during the earthquake was to blame for her own
death. The attorney for Anamafi Kalausa Moala called the report a
"whitewash" of the CHP's and Caltrans' bungling of the huge traffic
jam on the bridge and resulting confusion after sections of deck collapsed.
July 13, 1990
San Francisco Chronicle noted some Bay Area hospitals and clinics reported a
mini baby boom 9 months after the earthquake.
July 19, 1990
Scientists said odds that a destructive earthquake will strike along one of
four Bay Area fault segments at some time during the next 30 years are now 2
to 1. The scientists said they now believe the overall likelihood of an
earthquake with a Richter magnitude 7 or greater before the year 2020 is at
least 67 percent.
August 6, 1990
Red Cross dismissed criticism of its operations following a major series of
articles in a Pittsburg, Pa. newspaper. "It's absurd to look at last
falls' hurricane and earthquake and say the Red Cross can't do the job. The
Red Cross may have had a few little problems, but we were dealing with two
unprecedented disasters," said Barbara Lohman, a national Red Cross
spokeswoman in Washington, D.C.
August 8, 1990
"Midnight Caller" television show highlighted earthquake-ravaged
San Francisco as the topic of discussion on Jack Killian's radio show as he
speaks to listeners in the Bay Area.
October 5, 1990
Golden Gate Bridge District released a consultant's report estimating the
cost of strengthening the bridge and its approaches to withstand a major
earthquake at $75 million to $100 million. District engineer Dan Mohn said
the bridge is safe now but the recommended improvements would keep the bridge
open in a major quake.
October 13, 1990
A large fissure developed in the eastern face of Telegraph Hill. Work began
on rock removal and installation of a rock bolt system to protect against
further rock droppings. The crack was caused by the earthquake.
October 15, 1990
USGS said it has recorded more than 7,000 aftershocks of the 1989 earthquake
that range up to 5.4 on the Richter scale. Altogether, five aftershocks have
measured 5.0 or more, and 40 have reached 4.0 or greater.
October 17, 1990
"We will remember those we lost and celebrate the spiritual fortitude
our city showed after the earthquake," said San Francisco Mayor Art
Agnos. The Mayor asked churches to ring bells at the moment the quake struck
to honor the 67 people who died one year ago. Actor Danny Glover hosted a
ceremony at the Ferry Building, where the San Francisco Symphony and San
Francisco Opera performed as the waterfront building's flag was hoisted for
the first time since the quake. At the same time, the Chamber of Commerce
hosted a "Celebration of Heroes" at Pier 35 for the estimated 4000
people who helped out in the quakes' aftermath.
November 7, 1990
Red Cross began reorganization following massive criticism of its performance
during the earthquake and the relief scandal. Elizabeth Dole was appointed to
head the organization. Mayor Agnos said, "Elizabeth Dole has the stature
and talent to revitalize the national Red Cross and make it the kind of
modern helping force necessary for disasters in the 1990's. From our
experience in the Loma Prieta earthquake, it is needed."
December 6, 1990
Federal government would pay nearly $25 million to counties hit by the
earthquake to help displaced poor people. FEMA officials backed out of a
similar agreement announced in February, saying it had been signed under a
misunderstanding.
December 17, 1990
Third U.S.-Japan Workshop on Earthquake Resistant Design of Lifeline
Facilities and Countermeasures for Soil Liquefaction, held at the Cathedral
Hill Hotel.
January 28, 1991
San Francisco State's Division of Engineering held two-day course on
Seismic short course on evaluation and mitigation of earthquake-induced
liquefaction hazards.
February 11, 1991
Supervisor Jim Gonzalez requested a hearing on the seismic safety of City
Hall and potential plans by the Department of Public Works to repair the
building. Gonzalez said, "It's time to look at one of the buildings San
Franciscans use the most." Since the 1989 earthquake wooden bracing had
been set up throughout much of the historic structure.
February 27, 1991
Mayor Agnos struck the first blow as demolition began on the earthquake-wrecked
Embarcadero Freeway "Wednesday marks the beginning of the day when San
Franciscans will be reunited with their waterfront," Agnos said.
February 28, 1991
Strong earthquake shook Upland, California.
March 8, 1991
Repairs on two stretches of earthquake-damaged freeways fell behind one
to two years, a move which Mayor Art Agnos called "ridiculous."
Caltrans said some lanes of the Central Freeway should be open by spring
1992, and Interstate 280 between U.S. 101 and Army Street was slated for
completion sometime in 1993. That is a year beyond the department's previous
prediction and the fifth time since the earthquake that the state has changed
its estimate.
March 23, 1991
4.8 magnitude earthquake rattled San Francisco at 7:44 p.m. but caused no
damage. USGS scientists said it was an aftershock of the 1989 earthquake.
March 28, 1991
Conference on future earthquakes in the San Francisco Bay Area, held at the
Holiday Inn, sponsored by the Seismological Society of America in conjunction
with the 86th annual meeting of the Society.
April 2, 1991
Gov. Wilson conducted a statewide earthquake exercise by radio. More than two
million people in schools, offices and businesses across California
supposedly ducked for cover at the same instant -- 10:10 a.m. -- as the
Emergency Broadcast System tone was heard on radios in San Francisco, Los
Angeles and dozens of other cities. The emergency tone ended and Gov. Wilson
asked Californians to "join in an earthquake duck, cover and hold
drill."
April 17, 1991
Survey taken shortly after the 1989 earthquake found some people experienced
a sense that their surroundings were not quite real. Some mentioned unusual
body sensations, such as spinning or falling down a tunnel. Others felt that
time slowed down or that personal experiences sometimes seemed as if they
were appearing on television. The earthquake study was released at the annual
meeting of the American Psychiatric Association in New Orleans.
April 18, 1991
Fire Chief Postel released the Departments' official report on operations
during the 1989 earthquake.
Survivors of the 1906
earthquake gathered at Lotta's Fountain for the 85th anniversary. The
commemoration featured Ron Fahey, winner of the "Enrico Caruso
sound-alike" contest.
June 28, 1991
A 5.8-magnitude earthquake centered beneath the San Gabriel Mountains killed
two people.
August 17, 1991
120-year-old Spring Valley Water Company main along Valencia Street failed
and cut off water to the Mission District during the evening. Old maps showed
a break in same line at the same location in 1906. Martin Lieberman, manager
for city distribution for the San Francisco Water Department, conceded that the
old water line might have been weakened a second time by the 1989 earthquake.
September 4, 1991
USGS research vessel S.P. Lee began a series of tests in San Francisco Bay to
determine if the region's earthquake faults are connected underwater, and to
help predict if the Hayward Fault is ready to produce a major temblor.
Compressed-air chambers were to be towed underwater to allow the
scientists to read acoustic energy waves bounced from the chambers to the
bottom and back from earthquake faults and rock layers as deep as 15 to 20
miles. The tests were scheduled to end Sept. 19.
September 18, 1991
Scientists at UC San Diego revealed a new technology that will allow damaged
double-deck freeways in San Francisco to withstand a quake as large as 1906.
Researchers used computer-controlled hydraulic jacks to generate a force
greater than a magnitude 8.0 earthquake on the San Andreas fault, said
Frieder Seible, professor of structural engineering at the university.
September 20, 1991
A consultant's report estimated that repairing City Hall could cost more than
four times the initial estimate of $23 million. Assistant City Architect Mark
Primeau said the report identifies isolating the base of the building from
earthquake motion as both the least expensive and most effective seismic
strengthening technique. But the cost will still run between $80 million and
$100 million.
An earthquake-damaged
section of Interstate 280 in San Francisco will be reopened by late 1993, not
by the end of 1992, as a state official reported earlier this week.
October 15, 1991
State of California lowered the official earthquake death toll from 67 to 63.
A spokeswoman for the Office of Emergency Services said the change came when
county coroners ruled out heart attacks as a cause of earthquake deaths.
"When a person has a heart attack, for instance, that's a judgement
call," she said.
October 15, 1991
Supervisor Angela Alioto called for city's budget analyst to conduct a
complete audit of all expenditures, from all funding sources, relating to the
1989 earthquake. She said repairs on city buildings and facilities were
proceeding too slowly and cost too much.
October 16, 1991
Schools Superintendent Ramon Cortines and Fire Chief Postel launched an
earthquake curriculum designed to help educators integrate information about
earthquake preparedness and safety into the classroom and home.
October 17, 1991
"My impression as a citizen is that the city's joie de vivre has
recovered," said Dr. Charles Marmar, director of the Veterans Administration
post-traumatic stress disorder program on the anniversary of the earthquake.
San Francisco had not
yet reached agreement with FEMA over how much of the $117 million in City
Hall repairs the agency will pick up. About $94 million is for earthquake
safety work. FEMA and the city were also fighting over damage to another 190
public buildings. The city put the amount FEMA owed at about $30 million.
FEMA only agreed to about $12 million, and San Francisco had received only $4
million to repair the buildings.
October 21, 1991
The 1989 earthquake apparently did not relieve the pressure on the San
Andreas Fault as expected, said a scientist from the U.S. Geological Survey.
A trenching study of the fault line near Santa Cruz showed evidence of the 1906
San Francisco earthquake and a massive shaker in the 1600s, but no sign of
the October 17 earthquake. "The evidence from our trenching raises many
questions about that segment of the San Andreas fault," said David
Schwartz, a geologist from the U.S. Geological Survey. "Because there
was no surface faulting in 1989, strain accumulated in the shallow crust
since 1906 may not have been completely relieved by the Loma Prieta
earthquake," he said.
December 11, 1991
Scientists at a San Francisco news conference revealed the existence of a
deadly new earthquake fault under Hollywood. Dr. Richard Andrews, the state's
emergency services chief, urged citizens and local officials to review and
complete their plans for surviving a seismic disaster. San Franciscan's
seemed unconcerned at this new finding. The research was announced during the
American Geophysical Union's fall meeting in San Francisco.
December 21, 1991
Two-alarm fire did moderate damage to the Embassy Theater at 1125 Market
St. The theater was boarded up after the 1989 earthquake. It was one of the
few structures to survive the 1906 disaster in the downtown area, but was
damaged again in 1989.
February 6, 1992
Earthquake Engineering Research Institute's 44th annual meeting in San
Francisco to highlight new trends in earthquake engineering.
April 22, 1992
Desert Hot Springs in Southern California badly shaken by an earthquake.
May 30, 1992
Chamber of Commerce solicited businesses for donations to provide trompe
l'oil to help disguise damage at City Hall suffered in the 1989 earthquake.
June 24, 1992
Caltrans awarded an $8.4 million to Guy F. Atknison Construction Co., for
earthquake damage repair and retrofit of a portion of the I-280 freeway in
San Francisco. The work was scheduled to begin immediately with completion in
six months.
June 28, 1992
Earthquake in the Landers area of Southern California did major damage and
started fires.
July 27, 1992
Chairman David Coleridge of Lloyd's of London was to step down at the end of
1992 because of heavy losses suffered by the famed insurer from Hurricane
Hugo and the 1989 earthquake. But investor Claud Gurney, said Lloyd's had
been conducting its business "like a game of poker in a Lebanese
casino."
September 6, 1992
Carter Hawley Hale Stores, Inc., owner of the historic Emporium, reported a
six-million dollar loss, equaling 22 cents a share, because of damage to
company properties by the 1989 earthquake.
March 21, 1993
Oakland's Paramount Theater reopened after extensive earthquake repairs.
January 1, 1994
New Years' Day earthquake measured 3 on the Richter scale, rattled the
western portion of San Francisco but did no damage.
January 17, 1994
Los Angeles was struck by 6.7 earthquake, the worst tremor in that city's
recorded history. It was felt as a slight bump by a few people in San
Francisco. San Francisco firefighters responded to help Los Angeles victims.
Damage to the electric system caused power failures in throughout California,
except Downtown San Francisco. Seattle and parts of Idaho were also affected
by the blackout. 57 people died in the most expensive disaster in U.S.
history.
February 4, 1994
National Center for Earthquake Engineering Research Workshop on Seismic
Response of Masonry Infills held at the Holiday Inn Golden Gateway, San
Francisco.
June 7, 1994
USGS scientists meeting at Treasure Island said there is a 9 out of 10 chance
that a major earthquake will strike the Bay Area within the next 30 years.
Scientists also revealed new faults named the Hunters Point Fault Zone that
extended from the Point to the east end of the San Mateo Bridge.
June 17, 1994
State Senator Quentin Kopp said he has "had it" with the slow pace
of repairs on the I-280/Highway 101 interchange and called on Governor Wilson
and Caltrans to do whatever it takes to speed up repair work. The Bay Area,
he said, is getting second-class service from Caltrans compared with the
swift response Southern California enjoyed after the Northridge earthquake.
August 17, 1994
State Sen. Kopp, wrote in today's edition of the "Bay Guardian" to
complain about Gov. Wilson's cutback of funds for retrofitting California's
highway bridges. "Thus," he wrote, "Californians must trust in
the Lord regarding another cataclysmic earthquake and hope that the
governor's juggling act doesn't result in death, injury, or destruction of a
magnitude exceeding Northridge and Loma Prieta."
September 1, 1994
Earthquake felt in San Francisco at 8:16 a.m. but caused no damage. The
magnitude 7.2 quake in the Pacific Ocean about 90 miles southwest of Eureka,
was along the Mendocino fault. The strongest quake ever recorded in the area
was in 1922 which seismologists believe was centered on the same fault and
registered roughly 7.3.
September 12, 1994
Magnitude 6 earthquake 18 miles southeast of Tahoe Valley was felt in San
Francisco as was the 5.3 aftershock at 4:57 p.m. Richard Andrews, State OES
Director said, "This morning's earthquake should be yet another wake-up
call to everyone living in California that preparedness is the best defense
for surviving an earthquake. It is not a matter of if but when earthquakes
will hit." The earthquakes today caused no damage.
September 23, 1994
Unusual rain, lightning and thunderstorm in San Francisco. Warm and still in
the afternoon. Many native San Franciscan's described it as "earthquake
weather."
October 4, 1994
Tsunami warning for San Francisco and the Pacific Coast following a great
earthquake in the Kuril Islands. The alert was canceled in the afternoon.
October 17, 1994
The Vallejo Ferry commemorated the fifth anniversary of the earthquake with
ceremonies on the 5:15 p.m. departure from the Ferry Building. The crew of
the Motor Vessel "Jet Cat Express" tossed a floral wreath into the
Bay in memory of the earthquake victims.
Mayor Frank Jordan
held an open house for the news media at the 1003-A Turk St. Command Center
to show what what changes have occurred in emergency management since the
1989 earthquake. State OES director, Dr. Richard Andrews, also held a news
conference in the Marina District to tell of a new TV public service
announcement for earthquake preparation.
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