Since 1933, Crescent City, California, a small city south of the Oregon border, has been ravaged by 31 tsunamis, more than any other city in the United States. The tsunamis caused by Japan’s earthquake were expected to hit hardest in Crescent City and actually ended up causing significant damage to boats in the harbour and most of the docks.
But why do so many tsunamis end up hitting Crescent City the hardest? According to Slate:
The main culprit is the Mendocino Fracture Zone, an underwater elevation extending westward that guides tsunamis into deeper water, where they pick up speed as they approach the mainland. The West Coast’s topography around Crescent City curves inland, which intensifies a tsunami’s effect, and the shoreline of Crescent City itself is (as the name suggests) a curve within that curve.
[Slate]
Update: Fuck. SF Weekly reports that four people have been swept out to the see and one could be dead.
Image Credit: Bears in Space
