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San Fernando Earthquake

Around 6 AM, February 9, 1971, the San Fernando Valley experienced a 6.6 magnitude earthquake with an intensity (MMI) of XI (Extreme) in the region. Over the following month, there were over 200 aftershocks of 3 Mw or higher. With an epicenter about 6 miles northeast of Sylmar, shaking was felt across Southern California to Las Vegas, Nevada, with the most severe shocks in the San Fernando area. Extensive surface faulting resulted in an estimated $500 million in property damage, 64 deaths, and 2,000 injuries. It was the most damage to an urban area of California since the 1933 Long Beach Earthquake (6.4 Mw).

Damage to the Lower Van Norman Dam posed a major flood threat, forcing 80,000 residents to evacuate. Two buildings at the Sylmar Veterans Administration Hospital completely collapsed, resulting in 49 deaths. The Olive View Hospital, newly built and up to date on earthquake codes, suffered nearly an entire collapse. This, in addition to the collapse of freeway interchanges (the I-5 and C-14) and other structures, resulted in the final 15 deaths.

Following the damage caused by the SFV earthquake, significant state legislation was passed to minimize future risks to life and property: The Strong Motion Instrumentation Program, the Alquist-Priolo Earthquake Fault Zones, and the Hospital Safety Act of 1972.

The Strong Motion Instrumentation Program (SMIP) collects data from motion instruments to help seismologists and engineers better understand the effect of shaking on various structures so as to engineer buildings better to sustain future earthquakes. In addition, the data collected through the SMIP is used to regulate building codes and contribute to California’s early warning system for earthquakes. The Alquist-Priolo Earthquake Fault Zones (APEFZs) of 1972 limits building construction along potentially active faults to prevent damage from surface rupture. Finally, the Hospital Safety Act adopted new seismic standards for all new or updated hospitals to remain fully operational after an earthquake.

On the national level, Congress passed the Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act in 1977, resulting in the creation of the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP). NEHRP is composed of four complementary agencies (including FEMA), consolidating several disaster-related agencies with the purpose of building stronger apparatuses for responding to emergencies and reducing earthquake risks.

Sources:

California Geological Survey – Seismic Hazards Program. “The 1971 San Fernando Earthquake.” California Department of Conservation, Accessed August 10, 2025. https://www.conservation.ca.gov/cgs/earthquakes/san-fernando.

Communications and Publishing. “The Disaster That Helped the Nation Prepare for Future Earthquakes: Remembering San Fernando.” U.S. Geological Survey. Last modified February 4, 2021. https://www.usgs.gov/news/featured-story/disaster-helped-nation-prepare-future-earthquakes-remembering-san-fernando.

Federal Emergency Management Agency. “Building Code Lessons from the 1971 San Fernando Earthquake.” Federal Emergency Management Agency, Last modified June 14, 2024. https://www.fema.gov/case-study/building-code-lessons-1971-san-fernando-earthquake.

Lukasik, Tara. “San Fernando Earthquake Changed How We Prepare for Quakes.” International Code Council, February 9, 2021. https://www.iccsafe.org/building-safety-journal/bsj-dives/san-fernando-earthquake-changed-how-we-prepare-for-quakes/.

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Collapsed overpass at intersection of Sierra Highway and Golden State Freeway after the Sylmar earthquake hit on Feb. 9th, 1971. Collapsed overpass at intersection of Sierra Highway and Golden State Freeway. Substantial disruption to about 10 miles of freeways in the northern San Fernando Valley took place, with most of the damage occurring at the Foothill Freeway / Golden State Freeway interchange, and along a five-mile stretch of Interstate 210. On Interstate 5, the most significant damage was between the Newhall Pass interchange on the north end and the I-5 / I-405 interchange in the south, where subsidence at the bridge approaches and cracking and buckling of the roadway made it unusable. All damage sustained after a massive earthquake hit the area on February 9th, 1971. https://www.conservation.ca.gov/cgs/earthquakes/san-fernando.
Workers clear debris from collapsed buildings at the Veteran's Hospital in Sylmar, California, after a massive earthquake hit the area on February 9th, 1971.