Reply #15: You are also talking of the substrate [View All]

[nadinbrzezinski]

which is sandy.

It can be overcome with a lot of regulation that makes construction very expensive... and only to a limit.

You'd need to dig into it, long pillars... (and trust me, some Californians are in for a shock, a quake with enough of an intensity, with certain characteristics, will do the same damage as Port Au Prince) That said, that only makes earthquakes a little more survivable.

On the bright side, we do not have too many eight pointers... and the seven pointers are a little more survivable. That said, I was not that impressed after Northridge. We have issues here as well.

There is a reason why many earthquake prone zones used to have lower population densities. And yes I looked at the damage map, and I am betting the substrate is also quite sandy... the areas that were not that damaged, I am betting closer to solid rock.

Oh and good luck to you and your family. I am glad to see you here.