Has anyone here experienced an earthquake?

Question

Describe your thoughts,feelings etc.

Answer 1

I lived in Alaska for about 5 years; they were common up there. I lived right on the fault line that caused the Good Friday quake, but the largest I recall was about magnitude 6.7. There were only maybe a half dozen over a magnitude 6 while I was there, but there would be one that registered over a 5 every couple of months in the region where I was. You sort of get used to them, but never forget how dangerous they can be. We would move calmly to a safe area away from glass, powerlines, or other things that might hurt you, but never in a panic. You are much more likely to hurt yourself by panicking than you are to get hurt by the vast majority of what earthquakes do. Even if it is a huge earthquake, running around blindly and screaming is still more likely to get you killed than just standing there. I'll also agree with Dam that you can tell they are coming, but to me it was more like a building tension you felt for just a few seconds before rather than a rumble you could hear.

Now I live in tornado alley and just had a couple funnel clouds pass within a mile of my house less than an hour ago. Moreover, I am within the edge danger zone of an Earthquake from the fault that caused the largest earthquakes in North America, the New Madrid Fault zone. I will actually be in the town of New Madrid for the next 2 weeks.

The world will never be safe, but to put it in perspective I will be in much, much greater peril just driving to the grocery store than I am from tornados, earthquakes, and terrorists combined. More people die in auto accidents, but few people panic when they see a car driving down the road. Count the number of people you know who have been injured or killed in automobile accidents, then the ones you know that got hurt in earthquakes and such.

Hope that puts it all in perspective.

Answer 2

September 4, 1976 - Whidbey Island Washington Naval Air Station, 6:32 A.M.

I was in the barracks, getting dressed to go to work when I heard a deep rumble. I thought maybe something had blown up on the airfield or that maybe a plane had crashed, so I started to walk to the door to see what had happened.

Suddenly it felt like someone was rapidly beating the bottoms of my feet with a set of drumsticks, and I watched my Mr. Coffee coffeepot vibrating on the table, and knew it was an earthquake (5.3 magnitude). It lasted for about 30 seconds and while there wasn't any major damage, the sound is what was the most scary, just a deep, subsonic rumble that once you hear, you never will forget it.

I felt the recent one in Seattle several years ago, I was living in Oregon at the time. We felt a sharp jerking for several seconds, followed by about 2 minutes of long, slow swaying. The swaying almost reminded me of being out at sea with the Navy again.

Answer 3

April 29, 1965 Seattle
I was in high school watching a movie with the blinds closed. When they got the lights on some girls were under the desk crying, it was funny. It was interesting to see the way the building were cracked and some chimneys had fallen off houses.
Feb 9, 1971? LA
5 AM laying in bed after the alarm went off, my husband asked "what's that noise" I said earthquake. He was excited he had never been in one. He ran to the living room and opened the drapes to watch the cars bounce in the parking lot and transformers fall off the poles. I was trying to get him away from the glass that might break but he had to watch.
The water splashed out of our pool we lost several inches.
A VA hospital fell and killed some people, earthquakes aren't funny.
The last one was in Seattle a couple of years ago, didn't feel it but it did a lot of damage.
I was on the phone once and talked about other things during a quake, mom asked if we were having a quake and I said yes then later she asked if it was still quaking and I said yes.
If a quake isn't at least a 6 I don't pay attention.

Answer 4

Yes and of all places I was in bed in my flat in Liverpool.
The walls shook very violently for a few seconds and I beat the World record for getting out into the street.
I believe it was the biggest earthquake ever recorded in the UK but as it's epicentre was somewhere in the region of the Menai Straits, very little damage was done.
According to experts at the time if the epicentre had been a major town or city, many people would have been killed.

Answer 5

We had one here in the UK a little while ago. The aftershocks apparently registered here in Norfolk (150 miles away) but we didn't feel them. However, the animals here were very skittish for days afterwards - especially the snake! Didnt settle for three days. Moral of this story? If you live in an earthquake zone, keep pets and watch their behaviour!

Nessie

Answer 6

welll as of twenty minutes ago I was awaken by a doozy...my first thoughts were that the house was going to fall and getting to my kids. My heart is still beating and the likelihood of falling back asleep is remote. However, this is nothing compared to the quake that threw my out of bed in 1994. I thought it was the end of the world. I remember sitting in my door well trying to bargain with God to make it stop. It was the scariest event I have ever experienced.

Answer 7

Yes and you don't have time to think it happens so fast!! Everything starts rocking and you can't walk if you tried you'd fall down!! It's really scary !! The whole house rumbles it only takes a few seconds than it's over and you just collect your thoughts after the fact!! It's just a matter of time before we have another one more and more places are becoming earth quake proof but that has to be seen !! Not looking forward to the next one and the after shocks are so scary you think it's happening again!!

Answer 8

I've been in a lot of them (California) last real good one was 89. I was few blocks from where the freeway fell. But right before I felt it I swear you could hear the rumble like a muffled freight train coming. I was at work sitting in the office when it started and spent the next 30 seconds watching two stacks of pallets shuffle and unshuffle themselves like a deck of cards, was so cartoon like, then the aftershocks for the next hour and you tend to hold your breath at each one.

Answer 9

I went through a 5.6 in Central Europe (Holland/Germany) in '92, I think. I was in a waterbed and it felt like the surf was up!

Also a few decent ones in Guam, biggest was about 7.2 in 2002. Again, in a bed at night. It was like a train outside the house, combined with someone trying to wake me up by shaking me! (There are no railroads on Guam, btw!)

7.2 is pretty major, but it was explained to me that Guam's bedrock is porous limestone & coral, therefore it absorbs a lot of the energy, kind of like a sponge.

Answer 10

There was a tremor in our town 2-3 months ago which partially demolished some buildings and knocked out the electricty power for a few hours.