Thirty years ago, the 6.7 Northridge earthquake slammed South California at 4:30 a.m. on January 17, 1994, killing 60 people and injuring 8,000 while toppling down dozens of buildings and even a crucial crossing over the 10 freeway.
It felt like a steam locomotive was barreling through my bedroom as the walls shook like pieces of paper in a windstorm, and the sounds of the earth rumbling and of things breaking as they were thrown to the floor were deafening.
Since most people were asleep at that hour, it took a few seconds to realize just what the heck was going on. Was there a war? Had we just been bombed?
It seemed to last an eternity, but it actually only lasted 20 seconds.
I lived on the ninth floor of an apartment building in the LA city of West Hollywood. Once we realized we were still alive, my girlfriend, now wife, and I went on to the porch and saw that the entire Los…
