{"id":422894,"date":"2026-08-03T18:46:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T18:46:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/422894\/"},"modified":"2026-08-03T18:46:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T18:46:10","slug":"californias-top-earthquake-expert-issues-chilling-new-warning-on-the-big-one-it-could-be-tomorrow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/422894\/","title":{"rendered":"California\u2019s top earthquake expert issues chilling new warning on \u2018The Big One\u2019: \u2018It could be tomorrow\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Californians may need to keep one eye open as the long-feared earthquake nightmare could be closer than expected.<\/p>\n

A chilling new study has reignited concerns over the San Andreas Fault, with experts warning the catastrophic “Big One”<\/a> may strike sooner than previously thought.<\/p>\n

Caltech seismologist Dr. Lucy Jones, who developed a magnitude 7.8 San Andreas rupture scenario<\/a>, warns the disaster would be far more than a brief jolt \u2014 her models show it would unleash widespread, devastating impacts across California.<\/p>\n

\"Southern<\/p>\n

Southern California’s major fault system is more stressed than at any point in the last 1,000 years, research shows.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A new study suggests the risk of “The Big One” in California could be greater than previously believed. ABC 7<\/p>\n

Simulations suggest the quake would unleash nearly two minutes of violent, nonstop shaking, causing deadly gridlock and crippling critical infrastructure, including water systems that cross the fault line.<\/p>\n

The fault is the state’s longest, “therefore capable of the biggest earthquakes,” Dr. Lucy Jones told ABC 7<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Caltech seismologist said while the simulations can help us understand how it’ll happen and what it would feel like, it isn’t possible to figure out when it will actually strike.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Seismologist<\/p>\n

Seismologist Dr. Lucy Jones says predicting the timing of “The Big One” is tricky; it could strike tomorrow or any minute. Los Angeles Times via Getty Images<\/p>\n

“It could go another 100 years. It could be tomorrow. It could be, you know, next minute,” Jones said.<\/p>\n

A University of Bern study<\/a> also suggests Southern California’s major fault system is more stressed than at any point in the last 1,000 years. Researchers at the university, led by Dr. Liliane Burkhard, found that the Cajon Pass<\/a>, where the San Andreas and San Jacinto faults meet, could act as an “earthquake gate” that determines whether a future rupture spreads across both faults systems at the same time.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, a study by the Oregon State University showed a seismic event<\/a> on the Cascadia subduction zone could trigger the San Andreas fault line.<\/p>\n

“We’re used to hearing the ‘Big One’ \u2014 Cascadia \u2014 being this catastrophic huge thing,”\u00a0said\u00a0Chris Goldfinger<\/a>, a marine geologist at the college and lead author of the study. Goldfinger says if both faults went off, it would be a multi-state and international emergency situation spanning from San Francisco, Portland and Seattle to Vancouver.<\/p>\n

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