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Good thing I don't live in California:blink:
- Thread starter Royal
- Start date
Sure wish I had a video of me trying to crawl under a 6" lip at the contractor's counter of the lumber yard in Santa Cruz. Every time I would crawl up and tuck my head under it, the next surge would throw me back out about 3 feet. I don't remember just how many times I had to crawl back to the counter, but it seemed like at least a dozen. 8 foot florescent light tubes were dropping from the ceiling all over the place, and a couple smacked down right next to me. Hardware racks were toppling over into each other and the whole giant warehouse and showroom were a complete disaster. Lumber stacks out in the yard were also a nasty mess.
A couple of blocks toward the beach from the lumber company was the old brick coffee company building where the two young workers were killed when it collapsed. Many brick buildings fell or were damaged extensively and had to be torn down later. As I went outside after the initial quake subsided, a reddish fog of brick dust was rising up over the San Lorenzo river, moving in an easterly direction. Cars were askew in the parking lot and the light poles were still swaying. Then the first aftershock hit, and the huge historic church steeple on the hill above the lumber yard started shaking again like a dog shedding water. The rattling of the shingles and boards was really loud, and the shingles were flying off like mad. After that aftershock subsided, the steeple was nearly barren of shingles. On every street bricks and chimney parts were scattered over lawns, and if you looked up on the roofs, there were the telltale holes where the chimneys once stood, and a trail of red and white/gray down the shingles.
On my way home, of course all power was off and people were actually being courteous and waiting their turn at all intersections. That's what struck me the hardest. I may never see that kind of courtesy again, but it was amazing that those rat racers were so nice. I guess they were all in shock. My first duty was to go around the neighborhood with my trusty battery drill, some plywood and screws and board up several broken windows for the folks. Some horses got loose and ran across hwy 1 in Capitola killing one driver and at least one of the animals. A fellow north of town was sunbathing at the beach back away from the water and up against a bluff, and the bluff collapsed, burying him. The authorities dug the body out some time later.
Us glaziers worked 12 hour days for several weeks without overtime pay, but we were fine with that. The ugly part was many homeowners would greet us with a snotty attitude, usually mad because they weren't first to have their glass replaced that day. We had to wait for truckloads of glass to be brought over from the monterey shop, because nearly all of the glass and mirrors in our shop was destroyed. We had to lay 2x12 planks over piles of glass to get the glass trucks out so the loader could go in and clean up the mess. My truck was the only one damaged (of course). The crazy part of the whole scenario was the moving ground at the job sites. The ground was like jello, and almost made us seasick, constantly in motion just enough to feel it. Spooky as heck. My wife was amazed that the emergency broadcast system alert on the radio was NOT a test.
A couple of blocks toward the beach from the lumber company was the old brick coffee company building where the two young workers were killed when it collapsed. Many brick buildings fell or were damaged extensively and had to be torn down later. As I went outside after the initial quake subsided, a reddish fog of brick dust was rising up over the San Lorenzo river, moving in an easterly direction. Cars were askew in the parking lot and the light poles were still swaying. Then the first aftershock hit, and the huge historic church steeple on the hill above the lumber yard started shaking again like a dog shedding water. The rattling of the shingles and boards was really loud, and the shingles were flying off like mad. After that aftershock subsided, the steeple was nearly barren of shingles. On every street bricks and chimney parts were scattered over lawns, and if you looked up on the roofs, there were the telltale holes where the chimneys once stood, and a trail of red and white/gray down the shingles.
On my way home, of course all power was off and people were actually being courteous and waiting their turn at all intersections. That's what struck me the hardest. I may never see that kind of courtesy again, but it was amazing that those rat racers were so nice. I guess they were all in shock. My first duty was to go around the neighborhood with my trusty battery drill, some plywood and screws and board up several broken windows for the folks. Some horses got loose and ran across hwy 1 in Capitola killing one driver and at least one of the animals. A fellow north of town was sunbathing at the beach back away from the water and up against a bluff, and the bluff collapsed, burying him. The authorities dug the body out some time later.
Us glaziers worked 12 hour days for several weeks without overtime pay, but we were fine with that. The ugly part was many homeowners would greet us with a snotty attitude, usually mad because they weren't first to have their glass replaced that day. We had to wait for truckloads of glass to be brought over from the monterey shop, because nearly all of the glass and mirrors in our shop was destroyed. We had to lay 2x12 planks over piles of glass to get the glass trucks out so the loader could go in and clean up the mess. My truck was the only one damaged (of course). The crazy part of the whole scenario was the moving ground at the job sites. The ground was like jello, and almost made us seasick, constantly in motion just enough to feel it. Spooky as heck. My wife was amazed that the emergency broadcast system alert on the radio was NOT a test.
that I have ever read that did not come from a talking head. You make it real. Don't EVER worry about the length of a post on this forum. That is what this forum was put here for.
Years ago some would bitch about a long post on other forums and there are some story's that can not be told in 15 words. Heck, I will read the story's of any length but frankly since a person is painting a story with words on this forum, the story is much clearer the more words that are used.
For me some story's are just a mite too short. I need a lot of words to paint a picture in my old brain
Thanks for posting again
Years ago some would bitch about a long post on other forums and there are some story's that can not be told in 15 words. Heck, I will read the story's of any length but frankly since a person is painting a story with words on this forum, the story is much clearer the more words that are used.
For me some story's are just a mite too short. I need a lot of words to paint a picture in my old brain
Thanks for posting again
We were sitting there eating our lunch at the (then new) college 8 job site UC Santa Cruz. Oh, I know, UC Santa Cruz is a big nest of radicals, but the jobs paid well and the scenery was great 
I looked up at the sky and said, "look at that sky, it's weird looking, and the clouds have a kind of greenish hue. It's humid, balmy and it looks to me like perfect earthquake conditions." Two of the crew requested to leave right after lunch to go to Candlestick park for the series, so I cut them loose. A little over 4 hours later it hit. Santa Cruz county was hit the hardest, and literally hundreds of homes and commercial buildings were destroyed. We were only about 15 to 20 miles from the epicenter near Loma Prieta, (a local mountain peak), while Frisco (SF) and Oakland were at least 50 miles from it. On top of all the mass destruction, it rained pretty good the next day adding to the mess.
I looked up at the sky and said, "look at that sky, it's weird looking, and the clouds have a kind of greenish hue. It's humid, balmy and it looks to me like perfect earthquake conditions." Two of the crew requested to leave right after lunch to go to Candlestick park for the series, so I cut them loose. A little over 4 hours later it hit. Santa Cruz county was hit the hardest, and literally hundreds of homes and commercial buildings were destroyed. We were only about 15 to 20 miles from the epicenter near Loma Prieta, (a local mountain peak), while Frisco (SF) and Oakland were at least 50 miles from it. On top of all the mass destruction, it rained pretty good the next day adding to the mess.Wayne in BC
New member
That really brings home what we just see on the news! Now i know what folks went through for real, there is something distancing about TV news that does not have the impact.
If you wish just copy and paste this story, retitle and post it, i would like to put it up as a story. I cannot the way it is as it is phrased as a reply.
Thanks
If you wish just copy and paste this story, retitle and post it, i would like to put it up as a story. I cannot the way it is as it is phrased as a reply.
Thanks