Producers get shaking on quake prep

A shallow, 6.5-magnitude quake south of Haida Gwaii on September 15 as well as two smaller quakes off the Lower Mainland on September 26 and October 4 are reminders of the need to prepare for a larger seismic event.

Haida Gwaii rancher and large animal vet Don Richardson advises producers think ahead, with a view to collaborating with neighbours in the event of a large quake.

Richardson Ranch typically experiences “a couple” of earthquakes every year, Richardson says.

“It’s in the front of your mind every time you build anything,” he says. “You have to make sure that it’s going to stand up because we get [earthquakes] and we get very high tides and we get very high rainfalls and we get very high winds.”

Canada’s largest recorded earthquake occurred along Haida Gwaii’s west coast in 1949. The second largest occurred in 2012 along the same Queen Charlotte fault, with aftershocks lasting 10 days.

Every structure that the Richardson family builds is tied down with heavy hydro poles, anchors and hurricane ties.

“If you don’t, you get reminded,” Richardson says. “You go above and beyond as far as code goes … when you build it yourself.”