In the early hours (REALLY early) of Sunday morning we were violently shaken awake by a magnitude 6.1 earthquake here in Napa. I can’t begin to describe how utterly terrifying it was – made only worse by being half asleep! In between us both screaming, I remember looking down in the valley and seeing bright flashes of blue light as transformers blew everywhere. And then the valley went dark. It seemed that the shaking would never end and when it did, we stumbled around in the dark for flashlights, peeled the cats off the ceiling, tried to gather our senses, and check to see if there was any damage.
Luckily, despite some fallen things, nothing major was broken and structurally, this old house was a sturdy trooper! Not even any broken windows. It also helps that our home sits on a hill composed of granite.
Downtown Napa did not fare so well. A lot of beautiful historic buildings have been severely damaged. 33 buildings have been red tagged so far. Driving around, we were horrified by what we saw.
It has yet to be determined how much this is going to hurt the wine industry, but this year was an early harvest and some wineries have lost a lot.
The community is coming together. A lot of restaurants have cleaned up and are open for business. We will be going downtown tonight to support our local businesses. I just pray not all of the beautiful old buildings are lost.
Glad all are safe. Experienced my first quake several years ago in Richmond Va. Loud as a low flying plane. Maybe discounts on spilled wine!
What a shame about the town itself. I’m glad you and your home withstood the quake with no major damage.
Please stay safe…I was worried….Gilligan.
Thank-you, Dave!