From Ron Gibson
As a very old geologist, I could not agree more with Bill McGuire’s warning of the inevitability of catastrophic volcanic eruptions (28 March, p 26). We in California face a similar catastrophic natural event – a great quake along the San Andreas fault.
In 1964, before the plate tectonics revolution led to understanding of large-scale movements in Earth’s crust, I presented a paper to a Geological Society of America conference making the case that a 10-million-year-old formation is offset by 80 miles across the San Andreas fault. I was laughed off the stage.
Conventional wisdom at the time simply could not accept such enormous displacements. It is now pretty apparent that the San Andreas fault should produce a great quake every 50 to 100 years. Our last one was in 1906 and since then two great cities have been built on top of the fault – a recipe for the greatest natural disaster in the history of the US.
Thousands will die, freeways collapse, utilities, water and food sources will disappear – it is going to happen. Only two questions remain: how soon, and will it be northern or southern California?
Irvine, California, US
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