The 140-year wait has come to an end, claims a geophysicist. Residents of the San Francisco Bay area are being told to prepare for a major earthquake ‘any day now’ according to a scientist from the US Geological Survey (USGS).
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake emanating from the Hayward Fault shook the San Francisco Bay Area at 2.41 am PST on Tuesday, rattling residents but apparently not causing any harm.
The fault is due to trigger another ‘major earthquake’ as it is currently at the end of its 140-year cycle, claims Tom Brocher, a research geophysicist with the USGS.
‘The Hayward fault is capable of producing a major earthquake at any time,’ Tom Brocher told MailOnline.
A report published in 2008 had said there was a 31 per cent chance of a 6.7-magnitude or larger earthquake on the Hayward-Rodgers Creek Fault system over the next 30 years, but Tom Brocher claims that the reality is a major earthquake is expected ‘any day now,’ according to CBS Bay Area.
‘We keep a close eye on the Hayward Fault because it does sit in the heart of the Bay Area and when we do get a big earthquake on it, it’s going to have a big impact on the entire Bay Area,’ Brocher said.
‘There is currently no scientific basis for making a prediction for when that earthquake will occur.’
Tuesday’s quake was followed by at least 13 aftershocks, the strongest of which measured 2.7, according to the USGS.
Police said they were flooded with calls from ‘nervous and scared’ residents but there had been no reports of injuries or damage to properties.
It was centered at the intersection of Mission Boulevard and Niles Canyon Road a mile north of Fremont – which is around 35 miles southeast of San Francisco.
According to Abc7 News, many residents in the East Bay and even down to San Jose were were woken by the shaking.
Culled from MailOnline
