liquefaction, liquefaction is a term they use when the ground is loose. usually when structures or infrastructure is built on sand or land fill, something that's not solid, what happens is in shaking, during an earthquake, the earth that's very loose, that sand or land fill, acts like water. this is sand, sand and water coming up through a hole. in japan, all these buildings were built on liquefaction. i forget what year this was, but it was one of the bigger earthquakes. 7 story buildings built on liquefaction. the amount of time the earth shook, the earth became liquid and as it became liquid, the building sank into it until it stopped. when it stopped it just fell over. light damage buildings, superficial damage, broken windows, some plaster that might be cracked but basically a light damage building would be one that has mostly damage to the contents. shelves falling over, windows broken, that type of thing. if you had to go into a light damaged building, you would use these procedures. of course you gather information about a building before you go i

and we are also under this extreme danger of what's called liquefaction. in fact, 5% of the bay area is threatened by liquefaction, if we do have a moderate to strong earthquake and it's coincidentally our largest urban areas under the highest threat. as we zoom in, what i've done is i've highlighted the regions, if we were to see an earthquake, where it would be most vulnerable. that includes marina, embarcardero, market street and sole ma. certainly they strike back home here at the bay area. >> all right, thank you, jeff. >>> and given what we know about earthquakes living here in the bay area, there are lots of families looking at new zealand and wondering if their loved ones are okay. jean elie will have a live report from families watching closely what's happening. >>> now, there are some reports that suggest today's quake could be an aftershock from a magnitude 7.1 quake that struck christchurch area last september. some of the buildings that crumbled today may have been weakened by that september quake. although september's earthquake was bigger, t

it is all sold and liquefaction. >> treasure island is unique. it was originally developed to be the location of the world fair with the understanding that once it was finished, that would become the location of san francisco international airport. it is 11,000 feet long. in those days, the thought that was more than enough to land any conceivable airplane. they thought it was ideal. they said that we have all kinds of sand out in the bay from the sacramento river. we will take the stand out of the bay and create this island. the sand is loose and below the water. it liquefied in 1957. it liquefied in 1989 during the loma prieta. it was similar to what happened in the marina. >> as they move along and developed treasure island, the developer also has to provide stabilization programs. >> the sand has to be strengthened so that it will not liquefy. the buildings have to gain support below the sand in more confident material. >> we were talking about the waterfront. here's the very building. here is the intersection of the water and the land. the a

liquefaction, the only compaction that will happen will be where the towers are built. if there is a major earthquake, the buildings my stand-up but if the entire remainder falls out from underneath them, that is not a good situation. this brings me to the biggest issue which is currently in the eir, there is an assumption that the highest possible. james hansen things as possible to have 16.5 feet. in the eir documents, the planners say that they will plan for the fifth to 6 inches and if it goes higher, we will use adopted management. the economics of this project, the height which of 60 feet. kidd will be totally changed. the must account for this in the bill the plan and the phasing plan. this has to be clear be laid out. please include an environmental groups at the beginning of this process so we get more input that we got at the beginning. >> thank you. is there additional public comment? >> thank you. the project is dear to my heart. i did ask the developer who currently has a training facility on site that we used and i asked what would you plan for that civili

it not only has liquefaction, but it also has a hillside stability issues. while it may be stable sporadically, when the earthquake comes, the slopes may fail. as a minimum, they should retain the services of a geotechnical and structural engineer, and there are well qualified people who come out. i am not just talking about and inspection service, i'm talking that licensed engineer, geotechnical, to look around, look at the maps available, and write an opinion letter as to the adequacy of the structure or the soil. there is another thing to consider when you are buying and building to the east of the van ness ave. a third map. this map depicts the area of the fire that followed the 1906 earthquake. the blue is where all the buildings were destroyed or badly damaged by the fire. as a result, the ashes from those fires remained on site. in those days, lead paint was used to paint the sides of buildings. it is a known carcinogen. it is a hazardous material. what they did was after the earthquake, they took these mounds of sand, the valencia st. hill, if you go

there was a lot of water damage we might have even had some liquefaction soil failure. we had a major failure. >> that's right. this tribute goes all the way to golden gate. this is in a mountain lake and beyond ththat, it was a surface flow. this is a reservoir. on my right is this defensive the positive dune sand. the wind blows, it comes from the ocean beach. because the sand is moving, you can see evidence along this side of the hill in 1989. the vibrations in accelerated. you have a significant amount of movement to the point that the homes that uc had very severe damage for two blocks. we recognized what the problem was at the time, it was a matter of loose sand on a very steep slope. thank you for the effort. we were able to get federal funding and design which you see in the upper walls. the lower walls was actually billed as part of the wpa. the upper wall was built in 1991-'92. this is a concrete wall and it has rocked going through the wall that extends the distance of 80 feet beyond the wall. the next earthquake occurs, the wall is designed to resist and the

he hands over a disclosure package that includes information from the maps as well as about liquefaction and ground shaking zone, which can impact a sale. >> those of us from the bay area are very familiar and chances are, we have felt an earthquake and a lot of people have the feeling that i'm going to buy the house in this area. i understand that earthquakes are a part of life. people outside are much more wary and concerned. >> reporter: if you'd like to take a look at the map then go to nbc bay area.com and check under earthquake maps. >> well, a lot of people will be looking at them. thank you very much. today marks exactly 40 years since southern california's deadly sylmar earthquake. the quake rumbled through the san fernando valley. 62 people were killed. many of them in two hospitals which collapsed near the epicenter. seraewl freay overpasses also came down. >>> new tonight, the lawyer for a teenager who had been kept in sha shackles for years is filing suit against sacramento county. the attorney alleges child services should have known kyle ramirez was being abused for years.

have also been damaged by mud and water gushing from cracks in the ground in a phenomenon called liquefaction. about 400 people expected to take shelters at schools, stadiums and evacuation centers for another night. the restoration of power and other essential services is also taking considerable time. >>> that wraps up for now on "newsline." we'll be back with more news in half an hour. i'm michio kijima in tokyo. thank you for watching. bye-bye. >> california's gold is produced in association with kcet, los angeles, and is seen statewide on... this series is endorsed by: >> you know, sometimes you find treasure in the most unexpected place. for example, heading east on the i-10, out into the california desert, things look pretty deserted, lots of open space. not a lot of people live there, but of course, those who do live there are an independent hearty bunch. you gotta be tough just to survive the heat and the terrain. and that's what this adventure is all about. we're gonna spend the whole day in a little place in the desert that's full of history and lots of nice people. a place that fo

roads have been damaged by mud and water gushing from cracks in the ground in a phenomenon called liquefactionout 400 people expected to take shelter at the the stadiums, schools, and other evacuation centers for a fourth night. the restoration of power and other essential services is also taking considerable time. >>> in libya anti-government protesters are calling for mass demonstrations across the country after friday prayers raising concerns about more blood shed.

noticeable around the city is all the mud and all the sewage that's come out of the ground from the liquefactiontting it out in the streets. and then the trucks are going to pick it up. everyone is doing what they can. college student sam johnson started a facebook page to recruit a few mates to clean up the neighborhood. and by week's end, an army of 18,000 young people had registered. >> so the leadership that's happening around the world, that's what you see in other countries, and we're definitely experiencing it here right now. >> reporter: the engineering is quite extraordinary. the guys give them their assignment, they head out into the community, and help. >> anything that we can do to build back our community, we want the university to reopen. we want to live here again, because we grew up here. >> reporter: many roads are still impassable. so i set off on foot to check out how some of my old haunts had fared. i used to have my violin lessons in that room right there, right in the middle there. this is knox church where i went every sunday when i was at boarding school. totally destroye