These were developed as a result of the difficult learning process provided by the earlier disasters, such as the Loma Prieta Earthquake. Earthquakes are the most insidious of all natural disasters, putting aside man-made disasters. There is not an earthquake season such as for hurricanes. Earthquakes do not appear on weather radar. After the Loma Prieta Earthquake, over 1000 aftershocks were felt, some almost as strong as the first.
Earthquakes are both physically and emotionally devastating to the population.
They can wreck the physical infrastructure - the gas, electrical and communications lines which we are so depended upon. The local, regional and state economies can be decimated. Thousands of people can be left homeless or in makeshift shelters. The basic nature of earthquake disasters has historically remained the same to this day. The Loma Prieta Earthquake of 1989 was truly a wake-up call for preservationists.