WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The chances of a catastrophic earthquake hitting California with a magnitude higher than 8 on the Richter scale in the next few decades is becoming more likely, according to a new US Geological Survey study.
“In the new study, the estimate for the likelihood that California will experience a magnitude 8 or larger earthquake in the next 30 years has increased from about 4.7% for UCERF2 [The Third California Earthquake Rupture Forecast] to about 7.0% for UCERF3,” the US Geological Survey said in a statement about the study on Tuesday.
The study’s lead author Ned Field said that the chances for a stronger earthquake hitting California are higher because of “multi-fault ruptures,” where they can now erupt from multiple fault lines simultaneously.
“This is a significant advancement in terms of representing a broader range of earthquakes throughout California’s complex fault system,” Field said in the USGS’s statement on Tuesday.
In August, a 6.1 magnitude earthquake hit Northern California’s Napa Valley injuring more than 120 people and damaged dozens of buildings.
The Northern California earthquake is considered to be the worst in the area since the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, which claimed 63 lives and caused $10 billion in damage.
