California Earthquake Risk: Could the state experience a devastating quake like Turkey and Syria?

The city of Ojai in California was shaken by a massive 5.1 earthquake on August 20, 2023. Following the earthquake, the town was hit by a tropical storm named Hilary. California is also in an earthquake-prone zone, as it sits on the border of the North American and Pacific Plates. While the US does not experience earthquakes that often, people are naturally worried after the recent Hurriquake (hurricanes and earthquakes happening together). Some wonder if cities in the United States can also experience devastating earthquakes like the ones that have struck Turkey and Syria.

Earthquake in Syria and Turkey

Back on February 06, 2023, a magnitude of 7.8 earthquake struck southern and central Turkey and northern and western Syria. The epicentre of the earthquake was west–northwest of Gaziantep. Thousands of people died due to the earthquake. As per reports, the earthquake was produced by geological conditions that are also found in California.

The San Andreas Fault is a long fault line that runs through California, and it is capable of producing large earthquakes. It is about 1,200 kilometres long and can cause earthquakes of magnitude 7 or greater.

According to geophysicist David Oglesby, an earthquake occurs when two slabs of rock slide past each other. The orientation and direction of these slabs are studied by Seismologists in order to understand how earthquakes happen.

There are three different types of faults, including normal, reverse, and strike-slip. California has strike-slip faults, which are considered the most common type of fault. They are responsible for the movement of the San Andreas Fault, which runs from the Salton Sea to Cape Mendocino.

The largest fault in California is the San Andreas Fault, which is capable of producing earthquakes of up to magnitude 8. Hence, yes, there is a high probability of California experiencing deadly earthquakes like Turkey and Syria. Apart from the San Andreas Fault, California also consists of many other faults. However, they are not as large or as active as the San Andreas Fault.