Building Resilience: Learning from Japan's Earthquake Tragedy for a Safer California

OPTIMUM SEISMIC, INC.

January 2024 NEWSLETTER

Building Resilience: Learning from Japan’s Earthquake Tragedy for a Safer California

Ali Sahabi, GEC
Principal,
Optimum Seismic, Inc.

As we welcome the New Year, our thoughts are with the people of Japan who have faced the challenges of a devastating 7.6 magnitude earthquake. With the death toll rising to 100, and survivors enduring harsh conditions in shelters, it serves as a poignant reminder for us all.

In light of this, it’s crucial for us in California to learn and enhance our preparedness for seismic events, particularly in anticipation of the potential ‘Big One.’ Take proactive steps to safeguard your building, business income, and equity by exploring earthquake retrofits. Optimum Seismic is here to help – contact us at (323) 605-0000 or visit www.optimumseismic.com to learn more.

Why does Japan have so many earthquakes and tsunamis?

A powerful earthquake struck western Japan on New Year’s Day, killing dozens of people, destroying homes and triggering fears of greater harm from aftershocks, tsunamis and landslides.

Japan is no stranger to earthquakes. In fact, it’s among the most seismically active countries in the world and the birthplace of seismology, or the study of earthquakes. The study of tsunamis (the word in Japanese means harbor and wave) began here as well.
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1.7 Earthquake Shakes New York City Buildings

What residents said felt like a series of small explosions rattled New Yorkers from Astoria to Roosevelt Island on Tuesday.

For hours, confounded firefighters and Con Edison crews circled buildings just south of the Roosevelt Island Bridge and Tramway, even popping manhole covers, but found nothing.
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Trial opens in Turkey over deadly hotel collapse during earthquake

Turkey has opened the first major trial linked to the construction of buildings that crumbled in two earthquakes last year that claimed more than 50,000 lives.

The hearing in the south-eastern city of Adiyaman involves 11 defendants accused of “conscious negligence” while overseeing the construction of the Isias hotel.
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Five earthquakes within 9 hours throughout California coastline

Five earthquakes were recorded within a 9-hour timeframe Monday morning throughout California’s coastline.

According to the USGS website, the earthquakes were all between 2.5 and 4.1 magnitude and started around 12:17 a.m. in Boonville.
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‘King Of Beers’ Models Quake Resilience

Few might think to turn to a brewery for lessons on earthquake resilience, but the Anheuser-Busch company knows the subject well.

When its brewery in Van Nuys suffered significant damage in the 1971 Sylmar earthquake, the company decided to invest $11 million in retrofitting structures at the site to withstand the next major temblor. It was a good decision because disaster struck the region again in 1994 with the Northridge quake.
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Volcano near evacuated Iceland town finally erupts

Over a month ago, the sleepy fishing village of Grindavík was evacuated after thousands of earthquakes struck the Reykjanes Peninsula, signaling that magma was rising from below, only to stop just before it reached Earth’s surface. While scientists and emergency managers rushed to understand what was happening while also keeping residents safe, the world watched and waited for an eruption that seemed like it would never come.
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Transform Your Area with Optimum Seismic

Dragging a block of wood wrapped with sandpaper along a sandpaper runway is giving rural residents of Alaska a sense of the geology associated with earthquakes. These exercises are teaching residents important lessons and building resilience through heightened understanding.
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