It caused more than 3,000 deaths, approximately 225,000 injuries and $400 million in property damage.ĭamage occurred well beyond San Francisco, such as into nearby Santa Cruz, San Benito and Monterey counties, where buildings collapsed, bridges were damaged, and river courses were altered. It was the result of a rupture on the San Andreas fault that caused strong shaking felt as far north as Eureka and as far south as Salinas. The Great 1906 San Francisco earthquake is one of California’s most famous and largest earthquakes. On April 18, 1906, a magnitude 7.9 (Mw) earthquake occurred in the San Francisco Bay Area. One large liquefaction zone extends in the South Bay Peninsula from SFO down through Santa Clara and San Jose. West Oakland, West Berkeley and Emeryville also face risks. Outside of San Francisco, Alameda, San Leandro and Hayward rest within a liquefaction zone. In April 2019, California Department of Conservation updated their liquefaction hazard map for the San Francisco Bay Area.Īccording to the map, the following neighborhoods are in danger from liquefaction: Marina District, Financial District, South of Market, South Beach, the East Cut/Salesforce Tower, Treasure Island, Ocean Beach, India Basin, Hunters Point, and Candlestick Point. San Francisco and neighboring cities pose a high risk for liquefaction and landslides. Liquefaction can turn loosely packed, water-saturated soil to liquid and undermines home support structures. It’s also that when San Francisco earthquakes occur, they cause liquefaction. It’s not just the Earth’s shaking that could produce billions in damages and lead to tens of thousands of Bay Area residents becoming homeless. effects & damage of a major earthquake in the San Francisco Bay Area USGS names the prime Earth movers as the San Andreas Fault, the Calaveras Fault, and the Hayward Fault. Seven million Bay Area residents need to be prepared for a major San Francisco earthquake and weeks of aftershocks.ĭamages from a Hayward Fault rupture alone could shake one million homes with 77,000 to 152,000 households displaced. There is a 3 out of 4 chance of a damaging earthquake in the Bay Area in the next 30 years. See Your Local Earthquake Risk san francisco earthquake prediction In Solano County, it injured at least 49 people, caused severe damage to 10 buildings and caused moderate damage to more than 30 buildings. The 2014 South Napa magnitude 6.0 earthquake along the San Andreas fault killed one person, injured at least 208 people, and caused severe damage to 150 buildings and moderate damage to more than 1,000 buildings. The East Bay has a higher earthquake risk than the San Francisco Peninsula. The three faults in the Bay Area most likely to have a damaging earthquake are the Hayward Fault, the Calaveras Fault and the San Andreas Fault. Earthquake scientists estimate that there is a 72% probability of a magnitude 6.7 or greater earthquake in the Bay Area in the near future.Įarthquake hazard is spread throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. No crystal ball can accurately give us a San Francisco earthquake prediction. What is the risk of a Bay Area Earthquake?