San Francisco Remembers 1906 Earthquake
Jonathan Gudel Apr 18, 2017 2:40 pm
At 5:12 a.m. this morning, sirens echoed throughout the streets of San Francisco to mark the anniversary of the deadliest disaster in California history. A 7.9-magnitude earthquake, dubbed the 1906 Great San Francisco Earthquake, crumpled infrastructures and caused massive fires in the Bay Area.
Shaking could be felt from the North Coast in Eureka to the Salinas Valley and to the south of San Francisco. The main shock lasted approximately 42 seconds, with a preceding strong foreshock shaking about 20-25 seconds.
Nearly 3,000 deaths at minimum were estimated as a result of the earthquake, though that total is still unconfirmed today. The earthquake itself was crippling, but subsequent fires accounted for more than 90 percent of the damage.
The majority of those deaths occurred in San Francisco, although neighboring cities such as Santa Rosa and San Jose … continue reading »
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