When sensors detected the first signs of a massive earthquake hitting the northern California coast, an alert was sent to the cell phones of three million users, urging them to “crouch, cover and hang on.” It was hailed as the largest seismic warning system test since its public launch.
But people hardest hit by Tuesday morning’s 6.4-magnitude quake said the warning didn’t give them enough time to seek shelter. The quake shook the foundations of homes, left thousands without electricity and clean water, and injured more than a dozen.
Jimmy Eller, who was sitting in his parked Chevy Malibu sedan while working as a security guard, said the massive earthquake was already halfway through when he noticed his phone turning on when he got the alarm. He was more focused on what was happening outside, where the streetlights were beginning to flicker.
“They were flashing on and off,” Eller said. “I could see switches and wires flashing in the distance like lightning. It was terrifying. You could see everything moving and shaking.
The epicenter of the quake was located near the town of Ferndale, about 210 miles (345 kilometers) northwest of San Francisco. It was the largest tectonic shift for which the ShakeAlert early warning system has issued an alert since it was released to the public in California three years ago.
“It’s a truly first and innovative system in the nation that will hopefully save lives,” said Brian Ferguson, a spokesman for the California government’s Office of Emergency Services.
ShakeAlert was developed by university researchers and is maintained by the US Geological Survey. It is one of the few seismic warning systems created in different parts of the world in recent decades, including Japan and Mexico. However, the new technology, which is operating in California, Oregon and Washington, faces some challenges.
Before alerts are sent to the population’s cell phones, several seismographs must detect movement beneath the earth’s surface. This information can then be processed to determine the location and magnitude of the earthquake.
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Associated Press writers Brian Melley in Los Angeles and Kathleen Ronayne in Sacramento contributed to this report.
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Sophie Austin is a staff member of the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a non-profit national service program that brings reporters to local newsrooms to report on under-reported topics. Austin is on Twitter as @sophieadanna
