Tsunami /4/Strike Los Angeles and San Diego

A hard-hitting tsunami /4/soon strike both of the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego.

While the movie San Andreas /4/make many Californians very frightened, there are more issues than mere earthquakes that /4/plague the Sunshine State in the near future. Tsunamis /4/be the next hidden dangers that exist beneath the surface and that can show their lethal potential anytime. The tectonic plates beneath the area known as Baja and most of the lower regions of California are unstable and this in itself could spell disaster. 

In fact, earthquakes up to an 8 on the Richter scale are a possibility. This is cause for concern. Although premature doom-mongering is the province of the grey believers, the signs are all there and the best thing the inhabitants of this area can do is to adopt the Boy Scouts’ motto and be prepared. Judging from the unbroken record of the past, it /4/come as no surprise if in the days ahead such a calamity repeats itself.

Yet the art of predicting earthquakes and tsunamis is still in its infancy. While the major fault-lines and potential regions /4/be pinpointed, exactly saying when the devastation will occur on the timescale is a difficult proposition. 

One thing which researchers are busy working on is the mapping of the ocean floor off the coast of California. High resolution maps are the name of the game. Vigilance and care are better than forbearance or cures for the dwellers.

The topography of the sea floor shows that this is the region where continents meet and so it is a sort of trouble zone for the human living their lives directly above it on the land mass. And while real life is very different and far less dramatic than reel life, the film San Andreas is a warning that the future is not very idyllic. As a matter of fact, it could prove to be apocalyptic. 

There have been tsuamis or giant ocean waves in the past. The 2004 tidal wave that ruined Sumatra, or the truly phenomenal one that destroyed large coastal regions of Japan four years ago come to mind. This is not a signal for Californians to go into massive panic drive and end up manic-depressive.

These things do not have any fixed schedule. In fact, seeing the capriciousness and fiat of Mother Nature, the tsunami /4/not even occur or even if it does so, it might occur on a milder level than predicted. But it is best to keep the infrastructure as much earthquake-proof and the human elements drilled on the basics of protecting themselves if or when the calamity strikes.   

Source: Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface Via CBS News