Earthquake App Shows Homeowners Their Impending Doom

By CHRISTIAN MONTERROSA | Reporter

Living in a small forgiving pocket in the Santa Monica Mountains overlooking the sea makes it hard to believe any natural disasters could ever disturb our midday coffee.

But with more and more flash flood warnings by the National Weather Service, and predictable mudslides in Topanga Canyon, questions on just how safe Pacific Palisades really is begin to arise.

A new app called EQ Zapp by the California Geological Service maps out fault zones, landslide zones and liquefaction zones—areas where soil can become quicksand in the event of an earthquake.

All you have to do is type in your address and see if it’s time to get that emergency bag ready.

Plugging in several addresses in and around Pacific Palisades unsurprisingly shows neighborhoods tucked away in the mountains, like the now-famous 1525 Palisades Drive, to be built on landslide and liquefaction zones, but not on a fault line.

Areas closer to Santa Monica, like the 1500 block of Via De Las Olas and the 500 block of Amalfi Drive, light up yellow, indicating they sit directly on a fault zone.

The app shows an explicit fault line running east from Will Rogers State Beach through, and beyond, Beverly Hills.

Tim McCrick, head of the Earthquake Hazards Program with CGS, told KPCC radio station that “the app was created because the maps CGS had were hard for people to access and understand.”

He explained how such information was not easily accessible before and home buyers were only given such details once the pen was out to sign final paperwork.

McCrick said that while the app was not designed to scare people, it was intended to raise awareness to earthquake and landslide zones, so that homeowners can be prepared in case of a disaster.

For those living in earthquake and landslide zones, or near one, Red Cross offers the following safety tips:

Learn about local emergency response and evacuation plans.

Assemble and maintain an emergency preparedness kit.

Watch for flooding, which may occur after a landslide or debris flow. Floods sometimes follow landslides and debris flows because they may both be started by the same event.

Check the building foundation, chimney and surrounding land for damage. Damage to foundations, chimneys or surrounding land may help you assess the safety of the area.

Eq Zapp can be accessed online at conservation.ca.gov