Scientists are skeptical after an online personality predicted that a major earthquake would strike the Los Angeles area in the next 24 hours.
Predicted to strike near Thousand Oaks, the center of the alleged temblor was reported to be anywhere in the Southern California risk zone, according to the Earthquake Prediction Center.
5 HOUR WARNING: 6.7 to 7.2 earthquake is likely in the Los Angeles area – 09/29/2021 – [most likely NW of Los Angeles] https://t.co/VMyuA1tYdu pic.twitter.com/8Em4iVJRPF
— EarthquakePrediction (@Quakeprediction) September 29, 2021
There’s just one problem, the rest of the scientific community can find no proof to back up these predictions.
“I have no idea how that conclusion was reached,” said Dr. Jennifer Andrews, a seismologist with the California Institute of Technology Seismological Laboratory. “We have no reason to think that there is an elevated risk.”
Andrews noted that although there is always a certain level of risk due to nearby fault lines in Southern California, the prediction sweeping the internet is a surprise to her.
According to the United States Geological Service, the answer to the question if such exact predictions can be made by scientists is clear.
“No. Neither the USGS nor any other scientists have ever predicted a major earthquake. We do not know how, and we do not expect to know how any time in the foreseeable future,” reads the USGS website. “USGS scientists can only calculate the probability that a significant earthquake will occur in a specific area within a certain number of years.”
EarthquakePrediction, the source of the alleged earthquake warning, is run by Luke Thomas Holmquist, who has been derided by the press and scientists alike on several other occasions, with Thomas even being bestowed with the title of “Quake Quack” by Bay Area blog SFist.
14 hours after the “12 Hour Warning,” and 7 hours after the “5 Hour Warning” issued by EarthquakePrediction, no major earthquakes of any magnitude have been reported in the Los Angeles area.
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