This week greeted Los Angeles residents with a bit of a jolt, asa 4.4 magnitude earthquake struck the area early Monday morning, just a few miles northwest of downtown. It was the strongest quake in the LA basin since 2008 and sent Twitter and other social media sites into a frenzy (much of the activity was to share the on air reaction of two KTLA anchors, which quickly went viral). Fortunately, and not surprisingly given the moderate magnitude, no damage was reported.
California of course is the most seismically active state in the U.S., but it's been a while since a truly significant earthquake has struck. The M6.7 Northridge earthquake, twenty years ago, provided a glimpse into the destructive potential of temblors in the region, but seismologists believe that far stronger events are in store for California.
The big unknown is what's going to happen next time. Are residents informed about protecting personal safety? Will buildings and infrastructure endure the physical impacts? What are the financial consequences for all those affected? On this last point,I wanted to share a stunning infographic that our Creative team has put together that explores the question of who will ultimately pay when the "Big One" hits.
And if you can't get enough infographics, here's one from the LA Times on how to make your house earthquake ready: www.latimes.com/local/
