Portland Oregon has the shakes
#21
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 21,369
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
eroz, Portland is on a major fault line. Geologists realized a few years ago that Portland and Seattle have had huge earthquakes in the not-too-recent past geologically-speaking. They now believe the Seattle area experienced a 9.0 quake only around 1700, which is the blink of an eye in "earth years." It's almost a sure thing both Portland and Seattle will experience huge, devastating quakes again, maybe worse than anything California has seen in the last 100 years, it's just a matter of WHEN. In our lifetimes? Maybe, maybe not. In any case, Oregon certainly is NOT a quake-free zone!
Andrew
Andrew
#23
eroz- i didn't even know we were in such a long gray/rainy streak until friends from other places mentioned they'd heard it on the news (i'm in seattle). and to answer your question i think the sun's been out twice this month -lol.
my salvation is annual trips to either Hawaii or Mexico for a week or two vacation right around this time of year.
my salvation is annual trips to either Hawaii or Mexico for a week or two vacation right around this time of year.
#24
Join Date: Nov 2003
Posts: 367
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
We're in Chicago now and while we get some sunny winter days, its usually around 10 degrees! I just love Portland and all the things to do that can enhance your lifestyle. Its just hubby and me (no kids). I like the comment made about not realizing the weather/rain til someone else points it out. Everyone I've met in the NW never complains about the rain/gray, its those of us in the rest of the country!
I have an interview in a few wks so the move could happen sooner v. later. We spent a lot of time in the neighborhoods last October and may rent for 6 mos but hope to buy in
the Mississippi (N) area or SE Portland near Ladds Addition/Laurelhurst.
I enjoy reading all of the interaction on here, keep up the great job! Thanks all!
I have an interview in a few wks so the move could happen sooner v. later. We spent a lot of time in the neighborhoods last October and may rent for 6 mos but hope to buy in
the Mississippi (N) area or SE Portland near Ladds Addition/Laurelhurst.
I enjoy reading all of the interaction on here, keep up the great job! Thanks all!
#25
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 34,738
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
eroz, I have not seen Ladds Addition yet, heard it is beautiful! but I have been around and through Laurelhurst a couple of times and it is just so charming and pretty!
Good luck on the move!
While my husband is horrified at the idea of earthquakes, ( I am not so thrilled either)..it does not rule our decision making on staying here.
Quality of life is a big decision maker for us, we don't have to worry about where the good job is or schools, just where can we enjoy our days and where will Pup be happy .. lol.
So far, Portland is filling all of our needs
Now about standing by the windows in an earthquake, what does one do when ones apt is all walls of windows
Good luck on the move!
While my husband is horrified at the idea of earthquakes, ( I am not so thrilled either)..it does not rule our decision making on staying here.
Quality of life is a big decision maker for us, we don't have to worry about where the good job is or schools, just where can we enjoy our days and where will Pup be happy .. lol.
So far, Portland is filling all of our needs
Now about standing by the windows in an earthquake, what does one do when ones apt is all walls of windows
#26
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 9,642
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Shortly after we moved to Vancouver, WA, we attended an earthquake preparedness seminar run by the Red Cross and a couple of state geologists. They had a detailed map showing the various degrees of potential damage a serious earthquake would cause in the state based on various geological features etc. Also the type of damage. It turned out the square mile of Cascade Park that we lived in happened to be THE best place (geologically speaking) to be in the entire state if there's a serious earthquake. They gave tons of good tips. Such as: many earthquake related fires could be prevented simply by using plumbers' tape or similar to secure your water heater to the wall and that the most common injuries in an earthquake are badly cut feet from stepping on broken glass and injuries caused from framed pictures above the bed falling down and conking people on the head. And that if you wanted to put together an emergency supply kit, buy a wheelie garbage bin, keep it outside the house (supplies won't do you any good kept in a part of the house that falls down)--when you get new glasses, toss your old pair in the emergency bin as a backup, and so on. The seminar was fascinating and we learned a lot--a really worthwhile thing to do if one is offered near you.
#27
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 5
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I'm im So. Oregon and didn't hear any reports of the Portland quake. My brother lives in NE Portland, I'll e-mail him and see if he felt it there. We felt a very slight one here a few months ago, the rest of my family didn't notice, but I felt a bit of shaking, thought it was my imagination until we heard the news.
#28
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,242
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I didn't even know about the quake until I saw this thread. I think we were in our car at the time it happened. But my brother, who lives near St. V's hospital felt it too, as did a work associate who lives in Lake Oswego.
A friend of mine is a geology professor in the grad program at Portland State Univ. Locals have probably seen him, as he's often interviewed by media following any sort of "event": earthquake, landslide, volcanic activity, etc. Not too long ago, he showed me a map just like the one BTilke describes. Scarlett, do you care to know where the Pearl rates in terms of underlying geology, lol?
I survived the other Portland quakes described on this thread, but I remember the first I ever experienced was in SFO, probably mid 80's. We were staying with my sister who lived almost above the N Judah streetcar line. I remember being awakened by a loud rumbling noise, opening my eyes to see the chandelier above my head swaying to and fro, and feel the bed shaking. Thinking it was just the streetcar, I went back to sleep. When I asked my sis about it later, she matter-of-factly answered that it was just another earthquake. I know Andrew is right about Portland and Seattle being geologically due for The Big One, but the infrequency of earthquakes here helps me live in denial of that inevitability.
A friend of mine is a geology professor in the grad program at Portland State Univ. Locals have probably seen him, as he's often interviewed by media following any sort of "event": earthquake, landslide, volcanic activity, etc. Not too long ago, he showed me a map just like the one BTilke describes. Scarlett, do you care to know where the Pearl rates in terms of underlying geology, lol?
I survived the other Portland quakes described on this thread, but I remember the first I ever experienced was in SFO, probably mid 80's. We were staying with my sister who lived almost above the N Judah streetcar line. I remember being awakened by a loud rumbling noise, opening my eyes to see the chandelier above my head swaying to and fro, and feel the bed shaking. Thinking it was just the streetcar, I went back to sleep. When I asked my sis about it later, she matter-of-factly answered that it was just another earthquake. I know Andrew is right about Portland and Seattle being geologically due for The Big One, but the infrequency of earthquakes here helps me live in denial of that inevitability.
#30
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,489
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Scarlett...you talkin' 'bout me?
I felt the earth move a few times this weekend but I don't post on a travel board about it!
Brass/Montmarte!!!! Mrs Kal and I ate there many moons ago and enjoyed it. Sad to hear it may be going downhill in more ways than one!
I felt the earth move a few times this weekend but I don't post on a travel board about it!
Brass/Montmarte!!!! Mrs Kal and I ate there many moons ago and enjoyed it. Sad to hear it may be going downhill in more ways than one!
#31
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 1,076
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Ah, Scarlett, you're a true Oregonian now...welcome to the "Ring of Fire". We *are* in an earthquake zone here, and some shakes and rumbles are inevitable. I live over near Washington Square, and I could feel the earthquake last weekend, just sitting on my couch in the living room. Mild, but there. I've been in Portland for years, and I remember the steady shaking of the '93 Spring Break quake. Scientists do say The Big One could happen anytime. I did see a documentary on cable (Discovery channel, maybe) that speculates the big one would start off shore under the Pacific Ocean, where the plates meet, and would cause a tremendous tsunami up and down the Oregon and Washington coast. It's possible that such a huge quake would be so far away that Portland itself might not be very affected. All the rain we've had lately may be the reason this most recent quake, even though it was so mild, was felt over such a wide area. The saturated ground made the quake reverberate farther. The thing that worries me? Scientists say this particular quake comes from a fault they never knew about before. Maybe we'll just break off one day and go swirling into the sea.
#32
Join Date: Sep 2003
Posts: 7,090
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Merseyheart! Swirl into the sea! Yowee! Our new home in the Seattle area is right on the Seattle fault. I'm more worried that the big douglas fir standing tall and alone in our yard, is going to fall on our house one day - and that one is not at all unlikely! Ouch! But we hardly have mosquitos, and here's the BEST news: It is always sunny within a day or two of my daughter's birthday, which is February 10. I do believe that is when the winter skies start to break up here. So, cross your fingers. This is a particularly wet year. Last year, we were boo hooing about not getting enough rain! In a few months, we'll be complaining about our eyes hurting from the sun.
#33
Guest
Posts: n/a
I was 6 months pregnant during Loma Prieta. And we were on the freeway (17 in Campbel, CA). I've lived in the SF Bay Area my whole life. That was the strongest, yet we personally din't have damage. I've been pretty lucky with the quakes, knock on wood!
#34
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,330
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I felt my one and only earthquake in Kalamazoo, Michigan around 1986. Lying on the couch after work it started to gently rock. My first thought was that someone was shaking the couch. My second thought was I lived alone and who the h*ll was in the apartment with me! I jumped up and looked around to see no one there.
Early in the days of CNN Headline News I switched to that channel to see how long it would take. About 30 minutes later they mentioned reports coming in of a small quake in the southern Michigan area. I never did find out what it was rated on the Richter scale. Can't have been much as nothing was falling off of walls.
I hope the sun comes out soon for you Scarlett. I was in South Bend, IN during a November & December of the early 90's. They set a record of 35 straight days with no sunshine. It was starting to bug me. So was the guy I was sharing a small office with. He complained a lot about the lack of sun and how it bothered him and his wife affecting her depression. Then he'd discuss their plans to move to Portland Oregon in the spring. I tried to warn him...
#35
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 21,369
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hey, we had some sun in Portland on Monday briefly, or at least a few sun breaks. We had some in the afternoon and at dusk, when the southern part of sky was almost completely cloud-free and blue. I was out taking pictures at both times with my new camera, so I can prove it!
But I think there's more rain coming for the next week or so...
Andrew
But I think there's more rain coming for the next week or so...
Andrew
#36
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 17,749
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I missed it! I was in Utah at a girls getaway and we did not hear the news at all. Also missed the quake in Seattle a couple years ago as we were in Paris when that occurred. My husband and children did not mention this quake to me when I returned last night. I will have to ask them.
BTW, the sun was actually out for a few minutes when I landed in Seattle yesterday, and then it was dry when I finally arrived here in Portland.
Gardyloo--My dad was at Candlestick that same day.
BTW, the sun was actually out for a few minutes when I landed in Seattle yesterday, and then it was dry when I finally arrived here in Portland.
Gardyloo--My dad was at Candlestick that same day.
#37
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 109
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I'm in Portland - and I felt it. Or rather, I should say I noticed it. It was more the like the sonic boom thing. I'm on a major street, and it was not much different than a big truck going by. But it was *different.* I noticed what time it was, and wasn't at all surprised when I saw the news later. But sure nothing to make a fuss over.
Thread
Original Poster
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Joann_Robinson
United States
9
Jul 21st, 2012 10:06 AM