Earthquake2006 marks the 100th anniversary of the earthquake that almost wiped San Francisco off the map.

Are we ready for it when it happens again? Trust us, you don't want to find out.

WELCOME TO YOUR NIGHTMARE

The minute the next big earthquake hits-whether on the Hayward Fault or the San Andreas Fault or one of the other six major faults running like striations of cracking ice beneath the Bay Area, from Mendocino to Monterey and San Francisco to Walnut Creek-life as we know it will change forever.

Terrorism is an if. Earthquake is a when.

What if it happened today, shortly after you read this article - a century after the famous 1906 earthquake and fire?

In Marin County, where a single winding path once led through the bucolic countryside, thousands of cars begin to wobble and dance along Highway 101 as the waves build in intensity. Some panicked drivers spin out of control and over the highway's small bridges.

Out past the eastern end of San Rafael, the old piers and shrimping cabins along China Camp start tumbling into San Pablo Bay; nearby houses in Santa Venetia, built on landfill, begin to wallow in the liquefied soil, as do the apartments in the largely Hispanic Canal district a few miles south.

Near Sausalito, rocks and soil from the steep hills above the southbound lanes of 101 begin to slide, burying cars and blocking the roadway.

Read the full article in San Francisco Magazine

Learn about Emergency Preparedness at KC Emergency Action.