San+Francisco+Earthquake


 * __[[image:http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/images/38483000/jpg/_38483469_sanfran_238.jpg align="right" caption="The Cypress Overpass"]]When? Where? What?__**
 * The earthquake struck on the 17th October 1989 at 1704 local time.
 * The earthquake measured 6.9 on the Richter Scale.
 * The epicentre was thought to have occured at Loma Puerto, 10 miles north of Snata Cruz on the San Andreas Fault.
 * The tremors lasted 15 seconds and they were even reported 400 miles away from the epicentre in Los Angeles.


 * __The Aftermath__**
 * The final death toll came to 63.
 * About 3,500 injuries were reported.
 * Over 100,000 buildings were damaged leaving about 12,000 people homeless. Most people returned to their homes after extensive repair. However, some homes were demolished and people were only given 15 minutes to collect their belongings.
 * The two tier Bay Bridge and Nimitz freeway collapsed. Traffic in San Francisco was brought to a stand still and many homes temporarily lost power.
 * Baseball fans who went to see the World Series match at Candlestick Park were caught up in the earthquake with thousands of fans ran onto the pitch. Coincidentally, is is widely believed that due to this baseball match, there were a lot less deaths than the originally predicted 300 as people decided not to show up at work.
 * According to the (then) Governor of California, George Deukmajian some roads and buildings that collapsed were supposed to be earthquake proof. An enquiry was later launched by the Governor.

Sources: Wikipedia, BBC On This Day