Frazier Park sits atop multiple fault lines, including the San Andreas, and residents were reminded of that early Sunday morning when a 4.1 magnitude earthquake struck and woke people across the mountain town.
The quake hit at 3:38 a.m. Sunday on the Pleito Fault line, one of three main fault lines in the region along with the San Andreas and Garlock faults.
Robert de Groot of the U.S. Geological Survey said the area’s geology is shaped by intense pressure as the region is “actually being squeezed.”
“Imagine it’s just sort of stuck and it’s like a traffic jam. So, what’s happening is the crust has shattered. It’s broken into many pieces. Think of a shattered windshield with all different shards. That’s what’s happening. So there are lots of faults in the region, especially where this crunching is happening,” de Groot said.
Carey Moulder, owner of Cliff’s Cafe, said the shaking was strong enough to jolt the house.
“Then there was this huge jolt. That actually shook the entire house. And I was like whoa, what was that?” Moulder said.
Moulder and Robin Steere, both residents of Frazier Park for more than 30 years, said the presence of multiple faults in the region does not necessarily worry them.
“It doesn’t scare me. Maybe it’ll be oceanfront property,” Steere said.
Moulder said, “At the end of the day it’s never been anything that I’ve been concerned about. Like if I’m worried that Frazier is going to be cut in half? No. No.”
De Groot recommended standard earthquake safety steps: drop and cover, make yourself small or get under a table, and avoid moving around during shaking. If you are in bed, he advised rolling onto your belly and covering your neck with a pillow. He also said people should not get under a doorway.
He also recommended downloading the ShakeAlert or the MyShake system on a phone. The MyShake system is the ShakeAlert-powered earthquake alert that can alert you seconds before a quake.
De Groot said the Frazier Park region is unique because of the interaction between the San Andreas and Garlock faults, describing the land between them as being forced outward by pressure.
“But that section of land is literally being squeezed and being pushed out. So imagine: put a watermelon seed between your fingers. Think one finger is the San Andreas and the other finger is the Garlock and you squeeze and the watermelon seed shoots out of your fingers. That’s what’s happening to that triangular shaped land in between the San Andreas and the Garlock,” de Groot said.