This Sunday, June 29, marks the centennial of the 6.3 magnitude earthquake that shook Santa Barbara in 1925, leaving 74 buildings demolished and 11 people dead. Over the past two years, a group of local nonprofits, businesses, government agencies and residents gathered to form the EQ-25 Alliance to host events across the city to “learn from our past, reflect on our present, and plan for our future.”
Farmers market goers who sauntered up the 1100 block of State Street to the tune of live Roaring Twenties swing music, were presented with a fair lining the street complete with disaster preparedness booths, a vintage car show, and an earthquake simulator called “The Quake Cottage.”
“The Quake Cottage” drew lines of locals, eagerly awaiting beside the platform of the eight-seat box that tossed guests to and fro, simulating the motion of a large earthquake. During the 25-second shake, a common duration of a real earthquake, the interior dressed to look like a home gave the riders a realistic, and dramatic, experience.
Southern California’s intertwining faultlines “can have magnitude 7 or greater earthquakes at any time,” says Mark Benthien, associate director of public education and preparedness at the Statewide California Earthquake Center, as he references a 3D map at his booth. “It’s important for people to know what to do before to prepare, what to do during to survive, and then how to begin the recovery after.”…