Kimbonovich
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posted on February 28, 2001 01:06:43 PM
FOUND ONE!
Mercalli Richter Scale
I
II ---- 3.5
III ---- 4.2
IV ---- 4.3
V ---- 4.8
VI ---- 4.9 to 5.4
VII ---- 5.5 to 6.1
VIII ---- 6.2
IX ---- 6.9
X ---- 7.0 to 7.3
XI ---- 7.4 to 8.1
XII ---- over 8.1
[ edited by Kimbonovich on Feb 28, 2001 01:08 PM ]
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YPayRetail
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posted on February 28, 2001 01:17:51 PM
Hi all,
We are about 15 minutes North of Downtown Seattle - Lake Forest Park area.
The local guys are now agreeing and reporting that this is a 7.0. The only reason it is not more devastating is because of the fact that it was centered 35 feet below.
The first fatalities are coming in - apparently there was an elevator in Thurston county that dropped when it happened and there were fatalities. The local hospitals are also reporting injuries - most serious -not critical.
Two fires downtown that appear to be earthquake related.
Seatac is shut down, trains are shut down, Boeing field is shut down and there is a rock slide closing highway 410 to Crystal mountain.
Lots of cracs downtown and walls in buildings collapsed. Lots of roofs on buidlings off of 99/aurora are caved in.
Very scary - for those who went through the Northridge, CA (8.0) quake - the intensity and length matched that.
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toke
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posted on February 28, 2001 01:18:36 PM
Wow. I hope everyone is okay. Has anyone heard anything about the underground city? For the life of me, I can't remember what to call it...and I used to live in Seattle...
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NearTheSea
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posted on February 28, 2001 01:21:49 PM
I have not heard anything about the underground city, thats in Pioneer Square right?
I know everyone at Boeing got sent home, and now, I *think* I just heard that King County has been declared 'state of emergency' or something
Friends that just came in, where they sent them home from work,said that it was awful traffic in Southcenter area.
I'm near Des Moines thats about 10? miles south of downtown Seattle.
[email protected]
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Kimbonovich
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posted on February 28, 2001 01:24:47 PM
If it's a 7.0, it qualifies as:
X. Most buildings and their foundations are destroyed. Some bridges are destroyed. Dams are seriously damaged. Large landslides occur. Water is thrown on the banks of canals, rivers, lakes. The ground cracks in large areas. Railroad tracks are bent slightly.
Owwie...I hope there aren't too many more reports of fatalities.
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njrazd
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posted on February 28, 2001 01:48:49 PM
Our news is saying a 6.8 right now, but that will change over the next few hours.
They also said the tourists stuck at the top of the Space Needle had a great time! I think I would still be shaking.
My prayers are going out to all you Northwest people and hope that power will be restored soon to all those affected. I've e-mailed my friends in Olympia, but not sure if they've got power to access computers.
Anyone heard from Rainybear? I think she is from up that way.
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LouBega2000
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posted on February 28, 2001 02:05:06 PM
What day did this happen heard nothing about it over in Pennsylvania 
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magik87
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posted on February 28, 2001 02:14:05 PM
Well on that Mercalli scale it was a IV in Portland. Scared the heck out of me. It felt a lot worse than the Spring Break '93 quake. The shaking lasted about 30 seconds or more here.
News is reporting they have adjusted it now to a 6.8 quake. The pictures for Seattle look really bad. Luckily not a lot of injuries.
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NearTheSea
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posted on February 28, 2001 02:33:00 PM
If I remember right, long ago, Rainybear said she was in Federal Way..... what I hear Fed. Way is out of power, that was the last I heard.....
[email protected]
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Shadowcat
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posted on February 28, 2001 03:11:20 PM
The tom's family lives all over the Seattle area and I haven't been able to reach them.
I'm sure they're all right, but still, I'd like to hear them say they're all right.
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NearTheSea
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posted on February 28, 2001 03:23:31 PM
Shadowcat, its probably the phone lines, not down, just they are jammed with calls.
I know I couldn't reach my daughter earlier, and she's just about 5 mins away at work from me here in S.W Seattle.
I'm sure it'll calm down soon, and you'll be able to get through
[email protected]
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Shadowcat
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posted on February 28, 2001 03:36:52 PM
Near the Sea: I know that must be the answer, which is why I'm not continuously calling. Still, I worry. The tom's mother is elderly and not in very good health.
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kckckc
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posted on February 28, 2001 03:49:07 PM
I am pack dab right in the middle of Seattle, (Magnolia neighborhood), and my sister is still out of power a few blocks away. As far as Pioneer Square goes, we are very lucky this did not happen last night, as there were thousands of people rioting there last night. It is kind of weird to watch the news at night with a large amount of people in one area, and then that building falling to the ground the next day! I personally lost a lot of shelf stuff, and a VERY freaked out cat is running around still, but other than that, all is OK. My Gma and Gpa lost there chimmeny!
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kckckc
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posted on February 28, 2001 03:52:07 PM
One other thing, one of those things that sends chills up you spine...my nephew has a large framed picture above his bed, and on Monday his Dad suddenly moved it to the other side of the room. When I asked why, he said he just felt the sudden need to move it after the 6 years it has been hanging there... just in case it were to fall. For people who believe there are no greater powers at work, you have to admit that is strange timing...
[ edited by kckckc on Feb 28, 2001 03:52 PM ]
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Kimbonovich
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posted on February 28, 2001 03:53:56 PM
I heard that the number of lost animals right before an earthquake is amazing. It's like they sense that something is going to happen. You're lucky your cat is an indoor cat...he/she might be missing, otherwise. Anybody out there in the area have an outdoor cat? Did it stick around?
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kckckc
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posted on February 28, 2001 03:58:47 PM
Pets are so sensitive to nature like that! My friend in Federal Way could not get her dogs to stop barking this morning the hour before the earthquake. She said the entire neighborhood of doys were all going crazy. Thay have that sixth sense...
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RainyBear
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posted on February 28, 2001 04:07:12 PM
Hi guys! njrazd - thanks for thinking of me. And NearTheSea, you're right, I live in Federal Way. I was at work today in Pioneer Square when the quake happened. My company had gathered most of our staff for a big meeting and we were even conferencing it out to people who were calling in from other locations. Just as people were falling nicely asleep  it started. We were on the top floor of our 7 floor building and dust started falling from the ceiling as everything started moving around. People grabbed onto support pillars and doorways and just held on...
Out the window I could see the raised freeway viaduct (Hwy 99) and a light post on it was just swaying back and forth. It was scary -- at the worst of it I was afraid the building would collapse because I was thinking about the devastation in India recently, but this was nothing even close to that.
The meeting was such an important one that they carried on with it after the shaking stopped, even though about 60% of the audience had evacuated! I left a little later after exchanging email with some friends who had heard about the earthquake and after checking the news and the traffic report. Traffic was bad because the traffic lights were out on a lot of the surface streets and lots of people were trying to get home. I was worried my house would be damaged because it's south of Seattle, closer to the epicenter than Pioneer Square is, but the only damage at home was a broken glass oil lamp and a damaged book.
Driving down 1st Avenue on my way to the highway it was weird to see buildings with holes in the sides where bricks had fallen off... I guess Pioneer Square and the area immediately south of downtown got some of the worst of it, at least as far as the Seattle area, because Pioneer Square is built on fill and because it and SoDo have older, brick buildings. I'm glad the one where I work was recently retrofitted for earthquake protection.
The last I heard there were 25 or so injuries, five critical, the rest serious or better. Really, we were very lucky! As others have said, the depth of the quake really lessened the impact. It could have been much worse (and they say the area is due for a catastrophic earthquake within the next few hundred years), but as it is, most of the damage it caused wasn't nearly as extensive as it could have been with an earthquake of that magnitude at a shallower depth.
toke - the Seattle Underground is, as far as I know, still intact... though I'd guess they won't be running the tours until they check it out thoroughly. 
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HJW
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posted on February 28, 2001 04:40:16 PM
NearTheSea
It's time to move to Maryland.
Helen
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NearTheSea
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posted on February 28, 2001 05:04:20 PM
HJW yeah! I've been emailing back and forth with my freind there, she says the same!
Rainybear wow! you were right in the BAD area! You are so lucky!
I know, from the late 70's Gov Dan Evans was trying to get rid of the viaduct, because of potential earthquake damage to its structure. I think it was just on tv they showed where it had damage to it from today.
Wow! I bet it was a mess downtown! Went out to the airport P.O just now, a big a$$ sign saying 'Closed Due to Earthquake' and I heard a lot of schools are closed tommorow.. I can imagine its because they are older schools?
Shadowcat... had relatives in CA and FL trying to call, they finally emailed and said they couldn't get through. So I am sure its the lines being jammed up with calls.
OH YEAH heard this on local news: there are people on ebay auctioning off 'rubble from the Seattle 2001 earthquake'
I haven't checked it out, but I'm going to, geeeeeeeez! LOL!
[email protected]
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mybiddness
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posted on February 28, 2001 05:58:31 PM
RainyBear I'm glad to see you're alright. I just watched some of the news coverage a little bit ago. This was so frightening!
Shadowcat I hope you reach your family soon. I'm sure the phone lines must be jammed.
Thanks to those of you who live in the area for letting us know more about what happened and best of luck to you.
Not paranoid anywhere else but here!
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rawbunzel
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posted on February 28, 2001 06:47:47 PM
I live in SW Seattle and a few things came off the selves but that was all. Lots of shaking.No worse than the one in 1965 to me.
Seattle has lots of earthquakes, you just can't feel most of them. A couple of years ago we had a 5.0 and we have lots of them 4.0 and under. This area has the potential to have a 9.0 earthquake. People who move here do not seem to know this is earthquake country.
My outdoor cats came in the house right before the quake hit. The dogs shivered for a couple hours but all lived through it.
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mybiddness
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posted on February 28, 2001 07:01:03 PM
Rawbunzel It's very good to see that you're o.k. too. I just watched a little more of the cable news coverage and it is so amazing what nature can do in such a short period of time. I must confess that I'm one who never realized that Seattle has earthquakes.
Not paranoid anywhere else but here!
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enchanted
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posted on February 28, 2001 07:15:13 PM
Rawbunzel, I'm VERY glad to see you're ok! I was plowing through this thread hoping to see your name. I was getting quite worried. I'm so relieved you are safe and your family and property is all ok.
good news.
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rawbunzel
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posted on February 28, 2001 07:21:17 PM
Hi Mybiddness and Enchanted!
Really ,you would think a thing like this would scare the begeezus out of me but I was laughing and had a good time. What can I say? Nuts?? My neighbors bulkhead shifted but our neighborhood suffered little damage. We were lucky. Remember they always show you the very worst spots on the news. Most of us here are just fine with no damage at all.
Some caulking fell out of the glass panes in my front door[apparently it needs replacing! ] and one little nic-nac fell off a shelf and broke.All my paperwork around my computer fell on the floor. Amazing that is all that happened with all the ebay junk sitting around!
[ edited by rawbunzel on Feb 28, 2001 07:27 PM ]
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stusi
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posted on February 28, 2001 07:21:55 PM
just heard on the news that there were NO fatalities as of yet, contrary to what was stated here earlier. i also heard that this quake occurred on the day that Dubya's disaster preparedness budget was drastically cut!!!!!!
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ubiedaman
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posted on February 28, 2001 07:23:01 PM
Phew...glad to see your name Rainy!..I just did the "scroll" thing too...just lookin fo that ID
Stay safe!
Keith
I assume full responsibility for my actions, except
the ones that are someone else's fault.
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rawbunzel
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posted on February 28, 2001 07:26:00 PM
The great thing about this earthquake is that it covered up our embarrasing riots in the streets last night on the last night of our idiotic Mardi Gras celebration. Two people were killed there. Lots of fights and lots of broken windows. All happened in the same area that was hardest hit by the quake. At least it gave the media something else to talk about besides that mess.
Ah Seattle, A wonderful place in the universe!!
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Shadowcat
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posted on February 28, 2001 07:39:03 PM
Lawzy, I'm repeating myself. Grim.
This is one of those times I wish we didn't live so far away.
[ edited by Shadowcat on Feb 28, 2001 07:40 PM ]
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rawbunzel
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posted on February 28, 2001 07:41:58 PM
Shadowcat, is she right in Seattle? I could cal her for you I have not had any trouble calling local. Just email me if you want me to.
[email protected] [but tell me you did so I check that email!]
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enchanted
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posted on February 28, 2001 07:57:21 PM
Two people were killed in the riots? oh no
on the news they were running footage of the mardigras riots in Seattle right next to the footage of the quake damage, they didn't say a word about the deaths though.
I keep thinking about that bumper sticker that says "Don't Make Me Come Down There!.... God"
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