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Effects of the Truckee, California Earthquake of September 12, 1966 (PH 15-16b)(1967) (25 pages)
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Page: of 25
Effects of the Truckee, California, Earthquake of
September 12, 1966
By Reuben Kachadoorian, R. F. Yerkes, and A. O. Waananen
ABSTRACT
The Truckee, Calif., earthquake of September 12, 1966,
had a magnitude of 5.4 on the Richter scale, as reported
by the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey. It was felt over
an area extending from San Francisco eastward to Salt
Lake City and from Bakersfield northward beyond Chico,
Calif. Ground breakage due to seismic shaking occurred
in unconsolidated alluvium along a zone about 10 miles
long that trends about N. 30° E. and extends from a point
west of Prosser Reservoir, + miles northeast of Truckee,
to Hoke Valley. The concentration of ground breakage
along this zone suggests that it may be related to a subsurface northeastward-trending fault rather than to buried
extensions of the northwestward-trending faults that dominate the regional geologic structure.
Other effects of the earthquake include the following:
(1) Damage to Prosser and Boca Dams, (2) minor damage
to several bridges on Interstate Highway 80, (3) several
earthquake-generated slumps or landslides on Interstate
Highway 80 between Boca Dam and the California-Nevada
boundary, (4) damage to the caretaker’s house at Boca Dam
and a lumber shed at Loyalton, (5) damage by falling
rocks to the Farad powerhouse, to the wooden flume which
supplies water to the powerhouse, and to the Southern
Pacific Lines in Truckee Canyon, (6) minor damage to
water wells and water distribution systems, particularly at
Truckee, and (7) rejuvenation of springs throughout the
Truckee-Russel Valley area.
INTRODUCTION
The Truckee earthquake of September 12, 1966,
oceurred at 9:41 a.m. P.d.t. (1641 G.m.t.) and was
estimated to have had a Richter magnitude of 5.4
by the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, of 6.256.5 by the California Institute of Technology at
Pasadena, and of 6.1 by the University of California at Berkeley.
The earthquake was felt over an area which extended from San Francisco on the west to Salt
Lake City on the east and from Bakersfield on the
south to Chico on the north (fig. 1). Russel Valley,
about 8 miles north-northeast of Truckee, was the
only area to show any permanent effects of the
earthquake.
About 21 seismic shocks greater than magnitude
+ (fig. 2) are reported in the area for the period
1934-61 by the California Department of Water
Resources (1964). None of the 21 epicenters is
known to be associated with faulting at the ground
surface, although some in the northwestern part of
the area ean be associated spatially with northwestward-trending faults that are buried in the
Truckee area (south of lat 39°30’ N.).
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FIGURE 1.—Location of the epicenter of the Truckee earthquake
and area over which it was felt. Open circles indicate cities
where the earthquake was felt.