Conference 7.286::digital

    YES...
    
    I have been on pager duty, and at approximately 04:32 Pacific time,
    there was an earthquake of 6.5 on the rictor(sp?) scale.
    
    This is an earthquake is said to have been centered in the San Fernando
    vally, just outside the Los Angles and Burbank area.
    
    Major damage in some areas (according to the news reports). Many of our
    customers are effected by this earthquake as are some of our field
    offices. In talking to our contacts there, there are several freeways
    that have been damaged and closed.
    
    I am presently watching the TV news. All phone service is on emergency
    status, thus only emergency calls are being connected. 
    
    There are fires that have been touched off by the quakes. This
    information is as it comes in *LIVE* from the area.
    
    Bob
    

    
    
    6.6 .
    Lots of fires.
    Santa Monica Freeway buckled.
    Lots of looting (this IS LA).

LOS ANGELES (JAN. 17) DPA - A strong earthquake measuring
6.6 points on the Richter scale struck metropolitan Los
Angeles in the early morning hours Monday. 

   Eyewitnesses reported that buildings suffered substantial
damage, with windows breaking and walls cracking. Television
reports showed rooms laid to waste. 

   There was no immediate information as to casualties.
Local news reports said the electricity supply was cut off
in some places. Los Angeles airport was shot down, according
to CNN Television. 

   Police and firemen were busy cleaning debris and fallen
rocks from streets and motorways. Some houses were said to
be damaged around Hollywood. 

   The National Earthquake Centre in Golden, Colorado, gave
the strength of the quake, whose epicentre was about 30
kilometers southwest of San Fernando, southern California,
as 6.6 points on the Richter scale. 

   Another monitoring station, Western Observatory, reported
a strength of 6.5 points. 

   Television stations ran special reports on the earthquake
which struck at 0430 hours local time. 

   A number of after-shocks continued to alarm Californians.
Several smaller quakes had been reported in recent days. dpa
ba 171445 Jan 94 

   Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan declared a state of
emergency in the city. 

   Several bridges along the Santa Monica Freeway (motorway)
were damaged, according to CNN quoting experts. 

   There were reports of some fires and a great deal of
broken glass, said Chief Anthony of the Los Angeles Fire
Department. Electric power was massively blacked out. dpa ba
171459 Jan 94 
    

    Re: .2  on looting
    
    I heard this morning that there have only been 40 arrests for looting
    to this point.
    

    Apparently the one before was on the San Andreas fault, and was 6.5.
    
    This one was on one of the lateral faults and is being referred to as a
    'blind thrust' -- one block has lifted and almost turned on end,
    whereas the more normal movement is two blocks sliding past one
    another, vertically or horizontally.  I understand that it means it's
    done nothing to relieve the tensions that could erupt as the 'Big One'.
    
    My thoughts and best wishes are with you all who have, or may be,
    suffering...

    
    What can those of us outside the quake area do for those effected?
    
    Heard on NPR that blood donations are urgently needed.  
    
    Anyone know if their is a DEC effort underway to help other DECcies?
    
    Thoughts and prayers.....
    

    People are just starting to make there way into the Culver City lost. 
    The quake was felt for quite some distance.  LA, Orange and Ventura
    Counties were pretty rattled.  The SanFernando Valley in LA County was
    hit the hardest.  Many employees from my office have structural damage
    to their homes.  We have one office out of commission.  The damage to
    the freeway system is likely to impact for the coming year or two.  The
    Interstate 10 damage is just a couple of miles from the office. 
    Employees living in the high dessert and Santa Clarita Valley may
    experience serveral hours delay in their commute due to damage on the
    5, 118, 14 and other freeways.
    
    Looting was brief and minimal.  Most Angelinos are pulling together and
    helping each other through this.  Best way to help is through cash
    donations to the American Red Cross.
    
    Sue (who left New England after the winter of 78).
    
    Today's voicemail and system announcement notice:
    

                DIGITAL EMPLOYEE MEMO CONCERNING EARTHQUAKE

The earthquake that struck Southern California at 4:31 a.m. PST has had an
impact on Digital employees and our facilities. The quake was centered in the
San Fernando Valley and measured a 6.6 on the Richter scale.

Digital's Culver City office was closed today but will re-ooperations
have been re-directed to the El Segundo (LLO) and Carpenteria (ZBO) facilities.
Digital's Reseda employees should contact their manager or the Costa Mesa
office at (714) 850-7747 for information concerning their new office location.
We believe this action will not only insure the safety of our employees, but
will also allow us to continue to meet the needs of our customers.

As always, Digital's main concern is for the well being of our employees.
Digital encourages employees to use personal judgment with regards to their
safety and ability to return to work. Employees needing personal assistance may
contact the Employee Personal Assistance Hotline (EAP), which provides 
prepaid professional counseling services in the following manner:

Los Angeles 1-800-333-8327, Orange County 714-252-9131, Other 1-800-456-4006



    
    
    

    Even before the after shocks have subsided, politicians were asking for
    a 1/4 to 1/2% increse in sales tax to pay for the damage done by the
    quake. Surely, a call for an increase in income tax will follow. The
    last "temporary" tax increase to pay for the San Francisco quake has
    become permanent.
    
    If the economy of California is not destroyed by quakes, fires, and
    defense cut-backs, it will be destroyed by the politicians.
    
    Vern Dutta.

    in response to .O, writing from the UK, here's an update of what
    we've been hearing and seeing on the news:
    * The original 6.6 quake centered in a suburb about 20 miles north
       of downtown LA. There have been aftershocks since then, some as
       high as 5 on the Richter scale; these are expected to last for
       several more days.
    * The aftershocks have caused more damage to the already damaged
       highways in the area. Many of the highway structures were
       retrofitted to be quake-resistant, and the newer portions were
       built to current code -- but that made no difference. Both the
       new and retrofitted highways were damaged. 
    * Newer buildings designed with the latest quake-resistant technology
       (rollers) came down in the quake. Structural engineers interviewed
       on TV have said since there is no way to predict when and where
       a quake will hit, there is no way to quake-proof a building.
    * The quake has been traced to a fault line that no one either knew
       about or paid much attention to, being a small fault off the
       San Andreas Fault. The quake changed the look of the San
       Fernando Valley forever, by lifting two mountains higher and
       moving them closer together.
    * Water mains were ruptured; first reports said there was no problem
       with tap water, but within a few hours the word went out that
       residents with tap water should boil it first. Reason is that the
       water is normally double chlorinated, first when it enters the
       reservoir, then when it leaves the reservoir and moves into a
       main duct. The water now is only once chlorinated, so boiling is
       advised.
    * The emotional damage is taking its toll, as residents fear to
       to back inside their homes (those who still have homes). Residents
       are electing to sleep under the stars in their yards, to ward off
       potential looters. Fortunately, looting has not been a major
       problem, and the presence of the National Guard has been a pretty
       effective deterrant.
    * Property damage is estimated in the billions, and highway repairs
       are estimated to be at least one year. As said in a previous note,
       there is a recommendation to increase the sales tax to fund
       reconstruction. Many of the properties are under-insured or not
       insured at all for earthquake damage.
    * Statistically, this quake is not among the biggies of the past
       decade that occured around the world. Quakes in China, India,
       Russia were bigger. Deaths have been minimal, attributed to
       the "luck" of this quake happening in the early morning of a
       national holiday. Because LA is a highly populated area,
       almost any quake of size will cause enormous damage. 
    * However, statistically, this quake continues to show the trend
       that California quakes are growing in intensity. This was not
       the "big one," by any means.... a frightening thought.
    * Seismologists interviewed on TV have stated that in the epicenter,
       the earth moved several feet north, twisted and then moved
       a few feet south. 
    
    
    that's the latest scientifically oriented news we are hearing.
    regards, lynn

Random responses from the Culver City office.... Aftershocks continue had
a 5.0 just an hour or so ago, makes life a little tense (perspective - that
magnitude quake would have been headlines a week ago)....

Water is an issue, we are currently drinking bottled water in the office, this
is NOT because of leaks but rather is caused by power problems at intermediate
pumping stations where second level chlorination is done and is a precautionary
measure....

Damage was severe, particularly in the valley. The freeway system was just 
clobbered.

The San Andreas fault really has nothing to do with the fault that this
quake was on. This was the Oakridge fault and it runs through the San
Fernando Valley, out into Ventura and then out into the ocean. The length
is over 70 miles. This was not an unknown fault but was felt to be an
relatively inactive fault....

People are not sleeping in their yards to ward off looters! The main reason
is that a LOT of houses have had structural damage and people are AFRAID
to sleep indoors for fear that their houses will fall on them... Other
people are sleeping in parks because their homes were destroyed, others
want the company of others....

The San Fernando Valley is shrinking several millimeters every year, this
quake is an ADJUSTMENT to that shrinking. Also this is a very rapidly
moving area in earth terms.

The aftershocks will continue for several years in seismic terms. They will
probably continue at a level that can be felt for several weeks, with
decreasing intensity and frequency....

Thanks for caring 

Bob (new meaning to the phrase "Rock and Roll") Pace 

    Was that the Reseda office I saw on TV that had one whole end fall
    off during the 5.1 aftershock? And to think I wanted to visit the
    Reseda office so I could login and check my mail while I was down
    there the last few days.
    
        erik

    re.11
    
    Yep, that WAS the Reseda office!!! 

Today we had 6 4.0+ magnitude aftershocks in about a one
hour timeframe.

One interesting fact that the seismologists at Cal-Tech
have related is that the motion in this quake was up
rather than sideways.  There was as much as 12 feet of
upward motion.  Some have hypothesized that this was the
reason for such damage to 'quake proof' structures.

  Is there a special notesfile for the quake, as there was for the 1989 S.F.
quake?

    
    
    Information is piling up in the IVMSU6::LA_STUFF conference.
    Check out note 557.*
    
    Add entry or hit keypad 7 to add conference.
    
    Jodi- LA_Stuff moderator