The Northridge quake: Mapping the destruction
The Jan. 17, 1994 quake was the costliest earthquake disaster in U.S. history.
On Jan. 17, 1994, at 4:31 a.m. a blind reverse-thrust fault ruptured 9 miles beneath the Los Angeles neighborhood of Northridge. In less than 20 seconds, the 6.7-magnitude quake damaged more than 40,000 structures, resulting in $20 billion in damage and more than $40 billion in economic loss, making it the costliest earthquake disaster in U.S. history.
How the day unfolded
4:31 a.m.: A 6.7-magnitude earthquake strikes in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles.
4:40 a.m.: Fires, flooding, and collapsed buildings are reported across Southern California. In Los Angeles, portions of the 5, 14, 10 freeways have collapsed.
4:50 a.m.: There are massive power outages and the loss of phone service reported across Los Angeles.
5:20 a.m.: Gas explosions and multiple fires are reported on Cal State Northridge University campus.
5:40 a.m.: The Federal Emergency Management Agency announces it will respond to the earthquake.
5:45 a.m.: Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan declares a state of emergency.
6:00 a.m.: All flights out of LAX airport are cancelled.
6:50 a.m.: Approximately 50 structures are reported on fire, while hundreds of gas and water mains are reported broken.
7 a.m.: People are found dead in the collapsed Northridge Meadows Apartments. The death toll is later confirmed to be 16.
7:10 a.m.: Los Angeles Unified School District announces the closure of all schools.
7:36 a.m.: Death caused by 14 Freeway collapse is identified as a law enforcement officer.
9:05 a.m.: Gov. Pete Wilson declares a state of emergency and asks President Bill Clinton for federal aid.
9:10 a.m.: National Guard activates its emergency operations centers to help earthquake victims. More than 1,500 troops are dispatched within the next 24 hours.
10:00 a.m.: The Red Cross and Salvation Army set up shelters for people who lost their homes to the earthquake.
12:00 p.m.: Power is restored to nearly half of the 1.4 million LADWP customers.
12:17 p.m.: Gov. Pete Wilson dispatches 500 National Guard troops. More than 1,500 National Guard troops are expected within 24 hours.
1 p.m.: Tens of thousands of L.A. residents “may be homeless,” California Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi says.
1:10 p.m.: LAPD reports more than 25 arrests in response to looting incidents.
2:08 p.m.: President Bill Clinton declares L.A. County a national disaster area and releases federal relief for victims of the Northridge quake.
2:20 p.m.: Death toll rises to 29 and hundreds are injured as the search for survivors continues.
3:15 p.m.: Southern California Edison reports that power is restored to all but 150,000 homes and businesses.
Timeline of repairs and legislative changes
Jan. 18, 1994: About 8,000 homes in Simi Valley without running water.
Jan. 19, 1994: President Bill Clinton tours earthquake-stricken areas of Los Angeles and promises full support.
Jan. 20, 1994: Electricity is restored to nearly all parts of Los Angeles.
Jan. 22, 1994: LAUSD resumes in-person classes at many locations.
Jan. 26, 1994: A detour around the damaged section of the 5 Freeway opens to traffic with about half the capacity of the freeway itself.
March, 1994: More than 200 cases of Valley fever are reported as a result of fungus carried in dust created by earthquake lands.
April, 1994: Repairs of the 10 Freeway are finished.
May 6, 1994: Repairs of the 5 Freeway 33 are finished.
June, 1994: California voters reject an earthquake recovery bond.
September, 1994: SB 1953 is signed into law requiring all hospitals to be seismically retrofitted or replaced with earthquake-safe structures.
1996: California Earthquake Authority is created to provide earthquake insurance coverage for homes.
January, 1997: Approximately 13,800 housing units are repaired, roughly three-quarters of all damaged units.
November 1997: A plan to replace the L.A. County-USC Medical Center with a new 600-bed facility is approved.
2008: The annual earthquake drill, the GreatShakeOut began.
2015: The City of L.A. passed a retrofit ordinance aimed at saving lives during major earthquakes inside the city’s most vulnerable buildings.
2019: The city of Los Angeles launched a mobile application that alerts Angelenos of earthquakes of magnitude 5.0 or greater.
Those that died
- 49-year-old man
- Clarence Dean, 46
- Carol Runnings, 48
- Bea Reskin, 71
- Angeline (Ann) Cerone, 80
- Sharon Englar, 58
- Phil Englar, 62
- Manuel D. Sandoval, 24
- Jaime Reyes, 19
- Myrna Valasquez, 18
- Cecilia Pressman, 72
- David Pressman, 72
- Ruth Wilhelm, 77
- Darla Rae Enos, 43
- Jerry Green, 52
- Adam Slotnik, 27
- Pil Soon Lee, 46
- Hawon Lee, 14
- Ted Peter Fichtner, 28
- Marc Yobs, 32
- Karen OsterHolt, 30
- Amy Vigil-Tyere, 5
- Gennady Khytman, 45
- Kevin C. Maher, 25
- Woman, 92
- Lionel Ventura, 20
- Olga Robles Uribe, 26
- Hannah Kamiya, 75
- Burton Krell, 57
- Judith Ann Ng, 42
- 71-year-old man
- Beatrice Baitman
- Marzia Raziye, 22
- Elizabeth Ann Brace
- Michael Scully, 33
- Antonia Munoz, 66
- Margarite Bullington, 91
- Leonard Glasser, 60
- Concha Quintanar, 83
- Pearl Carr, 70
- Norman Cole, 79
- Madeline Riggins, 92
- Margarita Vasquez, 73
- Jerry Borman, 67
- Herbert Wesley, 45
- John Nalls, 64
- Maxfield Smith, 62
- 62-year-old man
- Javad Aslenpour, 90
- Albert Ramus, 75
- Arnold Sacco, 51
- Frederico Valenzuela, 55
- Frances Melton, 80
- Betty O’Connor, 70
- Edward Lee Horton, 71
- Willard Pearson, 55
- Rose Weinstein, 75
- Robert T. Hall, 62
- Refugio Romero, 88
Sources: UPI, AP, California Department of Conservation, Seismic Safety Commission, Earthquake County Alliance, Southern California Earthquake Data Center, Structuremag.org