7.2 Quake hits home

This is the web page my computer has been on since 5pm. And I have been refreshing it constantly, and will continue to do so through the night.

Just as everyone was sitting down to Easter dinner, our phone rang. It was an unknown number, but it was the area code back home. I picked it up to a voice I had trouble recognizing. The female voice said "Natalie, I just wanted to call to let you all know we are ok". I was trying & trying to recognize this shaky voice. I responded "that's good". And then again, she said "I didn't want to worry you guys". Then I realized it was my Mother in law. I thought "what is going on & why does she sound so weird". I then asked "What is going on". She said "we just had a really big Earthquake". She was upset & scared.

OK, now anyone that is from "Earthquake country" pretty much knows anything under 5.o doesn't even count in the "big" category. And anything under a 4.0 is "nothing to talk about". And I know my MIL, she will call in the "under 4.0, because, that is who she is. She's a great lady & worries all the time about her family. And she always wants to keep us in the "now". But something was defiantly wrong, as I could hear it in her voice.

I asked right away, "how big was it". She replies "6.9"! I asked is everyone ok, and she said she has called all the kids that she could, as phone lines were down, but once in awhile she could get the cell phone to work. She said they have no power & they just keep "rock'n & roll'n" and it won't stop.

Quick updates that she had off hand. The oldest son, he lives in a mobile home & it fell off the foundation. Next daughter, things fell off the walls & out of cabinets. Next daughter, also lives in a really nice big mobile home out in the country & not sure of the foundation yet, but also has things on the floor that shouldn't be there. Youngest son/brother, things the same. Stuff on floor & broken. Now his Father in law lives right on the Mexico/CA border & his house/stuff is pretty much "toast". My niece's husband, who is a firefighter was running out of the house & something fell on his foot, so now he is limping around trying to help my in laws, as my MIL will NOT go back inside the house. She said every time she tries to, the ground starts to shake again.

Of course I then call my brother (see last Earthquake post about him & my BFF) I asked him if he was ok & he said "yeah, just hanging out". He was at a family Easter party & was afraid to go home & access the damage. He's pretty sure he's lost a few TV's & stuff from the walls. Then my aunt calls & says she was at my cousins having dinner & stuff started flying out of the cabinets in the kitchen & the "girls" in the house were screaming & running for the doors. (I don't know why, but u always run for the door during an Earthquake, just watch out for falling poles/trees). My aunt said she was trying to walk outside, but fell onto the couch & just "rode" it out. She went home & her chandelier was still moving. And her bedroom TV was on the floor. She said in all her 70 yrs living there, that is the biggest one she has been in.

My MIL called one more time before 9pm. They are still rock'n & roll'n. There is a slight breeze, so it is keeping the weather nice to be outside. (my aunt was just happy that she got her power back on so she could turn her air conditioner back on). LOL. I can remember when I was 19, we had a 6.1 and I slept outside for 2 nights. It was fun. Like having a camp out/block party. I can also remember the look on my young boys faces when they went through their first Earthquake. They thought it was really "neat" that the water was splashing out of our swimming pool.

Since 3:40pm their time, they have had 4 aftershocks that rates 5.0 or over. 16 aftershocks between 4.0-4.9. 82 aftershocks between 3.0-3.9. I stopped counting after midnight their time.

One thing about Earthquakes, you can't see them coming . I bet people were just starting to fall asleep & their last big one was at 11:17pm & was 4.2

Looks like they had to close down the Interstate from the valley to San Diego and traffic had to detour onto a back road. I'm just so glad I wasn't there to answer all the stupid questions that would of been coming in on the 911 lines. "How big was that quake". My favorite response to those calls where..."I'm not sure, this isn't Cal-Tech, call them"!