The five-story, reinforced-concrete Medical Treatment and Care Building was one of three new additions to the complex (all three of which sustained damage), was assembled with earthquake-resistant construction techniques, and was completed in December 1970. Soil liquefaction played a role within confined areas of the slide, but it was not responsible for all the motion at the site, and tectonic slip of faults in the area was also excluded as a cause. The slides ranged from 49–984 feet (15–300 m) in length, and could be further categorized as rock falls, soil falls, debris slides, avalanches, and slumps. The group of one-story structures 300 feet west of the new facility, and some other buildings, were not damaged. The initial surveyors of the extensive faulting in the valley, foothills, and mountains reported only tectonic faulting, while excluding fissures and other features that arose from the effects of compaction and landsliding. In the city of San Fernando, underground water, sewer, and gas systems suffered breaks too numerous to count, and some sections were so badly damaged that they were abandoned. [17], The damage was greatest near and well north of the surface faulting, and at the foot of the mountains. Scarps ran along the sidewalk and across the property. 2. Since it is presumed that surface rupture will likely take place where past surface displacement has occurred, the state geologist was given the responsibility for evaluating and mapping faults that had evidence of Holocene rupture, and creating regulatory zones around them called Earthquake Fault Zones. There are various names for this earthquake. Gordon Oakeshott, Deputy Chief had mapped part of the San Fernando 15-minute quadrangle in doing research for his doctoral dissertation in 1936; he revised and extended the map for publication in 1958 as California Division of Mines Bulletin 172, Geology and mineral deposits of the San Fernando quadrangle, Los Angeles County, California. Peter Fischer, of Whittier College, had the foresight and was instrumental in making arrangements for Marine Corps support. Three Division geologists had an especial interest in the area, as well as especial expertise. The domain of the ranges stretches from the Channel Islands offshore, to the Little San Bernardino Mountains, 300 miles (480 km) to the east. Transportation around the Los Angeles area was severely afflicted with roadway failures and the partial collapse of several major freeway interchanges. There was no movement on the faults near the hospital; damage to the building has been attributed to the intense shaking to which it was subjected. The unincorporated districts of Newhall, Saugus, and Solemint Junction had moderate damage, even to newer buildings. These buildings suffered the most damage, with four buildings totally collapsing, which resulted in a large loss of life at the facility. It was an expensive and heartbreaking lesson, but California has learned something, and can take heart. As categorized during the intensive studies immediately following the earthquake, they were labeled the Mission Wells segment, Sylmar segment, Tujunga segment, Foothills area, and the Veterans fault. The 1971 San Fernando (a.k.a. February 9, 1971, Granada Hills, CA. [18], Federal, county, and private hospitals suffered varying degrees of damage, with four major facilities in the San Fernando Valley suffering structural damage, and two of those collapsing. [12][13], All segments shared the common elements of thrust faulting with a component of left-lateral slip, a general east–west strike and a northward dip, but they were not unified with regard to their connection to the associated underlying bedrock. When it was apparent that the landslide potential of the hillsides, though great, did not threaten any urban areas, the geologists turned their attention to the study of geologic effects--so often ephemeral--and to other geologic hazards that may have been developed or increased by the earthquake. But what we have learned is far surpassed by our astonishing luck. The landslides they mapped included those in the eastern half of the San Fernando quadrangle. The gray zones represent areas with unsafe wood-frame dwellings (the locations of which are shown by a diamond symbols). Damage from the 1971 quake. Ground displacement damaged sidewalks and roads, with cracks in the more rigid asphalt and concrete often exceeding the width of the shift in the underlying soil. Upon revisiting the scene of his earlier mapping, Mr. Saul was able to recognize that movement had taken place on the Santa Susana thrust, in the Bee Canyon area. Recordprocessed by the JetPropulsion Laboratory, Pasadena; made avail­ able by the Earthquake Engineering Research Laboratory, California In­ In the southern California area--from Point Arguello to Nevada and from the Mexican border to Owens Valley--seismic records suggest that 37 shocks of this magnitude or greater might be expected in a century; indeed, one might expect two shocks with a magnitude of 8.0 or more. They were supported by aircraft: a fixed wing chartered plane and a helicopter provided and manned by the U. S. Marine Corps. Although the Richter magnitude of the tremblor was 6.6, ranking it as moderate to large, but not great, it shook a wide, heavily populated area, leaving death and destruction in its wake. All these buildings had been previously inspected with regard to the requirements of the Act, and many were reinforced or rebuilt at that time, but earthquake engineering experts recommended further immediate refurbishment or demolition after a separate evaluation was done after the February 1971 earthquake, and within a year and a half the district followed through with the direction with regard to about 100 structures. Additional breaks occurred farther to the east that were in a more scattered fashion, while the western portion of the most affected area had less pronounced scarps, especially the detached Mission Wells segment. 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