The 1994 Los Angeles Earthquake

Why did the Northridge Earthquake happen?

    The 1994 Los Angeles Earthquake happened when a blind thrust fault occured on an very populated area undergoing compressional stress that has rocks that deform in a ductile fashion overlying rocks that deform in a crumbly fashion. The compressional stress then causes the upper rocks to fold as the hanging wall block is pushed up along the underlying thrust fault. Blind thrust faults occur in Southern California because of the nature of the strike-slip faulting that occurs on the San Andreas Fault.  The earthquake happend because ductile rock layers fold.  It lats on the Pacific plate.

Affects

People who inhale certain airborn spores get infected with the disease called coccidioidomycosis, 203 people caught this disease.  57 people died and over 8,500 were injured from collasping buildings, freeways collasping, ect. Doctors were having to preform surgery in open air because hospital buildings were severly damaged. The Earthquake happend at 4:30 am so less people were injured, because they were in bed. 500,000 were without electricity.  The earthquake was the third major earthquake to occur in the state in 23 years (after the 1971 San Fernando Valley and 1989 San Francisco–Oakland earthquakes), the Northridge earthquake was the state's most destructive one since the San Francisco earthquake of 1906 and the one that cost the most expensive for reconstruction.

Earthquake facts

Date January 17, 1994 (1994-01-17)
Origin time 04:31
PST (12:30 UTC)
Magnitude 6.7
Mw
Depth 19.0 km (11.8 mi)
Epicenter location
34°12′25″N 118°32′06″W / 34.207°N 118.535°W / 34.207; 118.535Coordinates: 34°12′25″N 118°32′06″W / 34.207°N 118.535°W / 34.207; -118.535
Countries or regions affected  United States (Southern California)
Max. intensityIX - Ruinous 
57 killed and more than 8,500 injured