The Nisqually Earthquake of February 28, 2001, which shook Western Washington and beyond, seriously damaged or destroyed some buildings, along with roads, and impacted bridges.
The quake injured around 400 people and was rated at a magnitude 6.8 for the amount of energy it released.
Nobody died as a direct result of failing bricks or debris. A heart attack victim was the only fatality associated with the quake. Damage estimates were placed at several billion dollars.
Seven years earlier in southern California, the Northridge Earthquake killed nearly 60 people, wiped out buildings, brought freeway bridges crashing down, and cost upward of $50 billion.
Clearly, Northridge was the bigger disaster. But if you think it was the bigger earthquake, listen to seismologist Bill Steele with the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network at the University of Washington.
