California’s top earthquake expert issues chilling new warning on ‘The Big One’: ‘It could be tomorrow’

Californians may need to keep one eye open as the long-feared earthquake nightmare could be closer than expected.

A chilling new study has reignited concerns over the San Andreas Fault, with experts warning the catastrophic “Big One” may strike sooner than previously thought.

Caltech seismologist Dr. Lucy Jones, who developed a magnitude 7.8 San Andreas rupture scenario, warns the disaster would be far more than a brief jolt — her models show it would unleash widespread, devastating impacts across California.

Simulations suggest the quake would unleash nearly two minutes of violent, nonstop shaking, causing deadly gridlock and crippling critical infrastructure, including water systems that cross the fault line.

The fault is the state’s longest, “therefore capable of the biggest earthquakes,” Dr. Lucy Jones told ABC 7.

The Caltech seismologist said while the simulations can help us understand how it’ll happen and what it would feel like, it isn’t possible to figure out when it will actually strike. 

“It could go another 100 years. It could be tomorrow. It could be, you know, next minute,” Jones said.

A University of Bern study also suggests Southern California’s major fault system is more stressed than at any point in the last 1,000 years. Researchers found that the Cajon Pass, where the San Andreas and San Jacinto faults meet, could act as an “earthquake gate” that determines whether a future rupture spreads across both faults.

The research at University of Bern led by Dr. Liliane Burkhard also introduces a new concept, describing Cajon Pass as an “earthquake gate,” a key junction that may determine whether a large earthquake remains confined to a single fault or spreads across both fault systems at the same time. 

Earlier this year, a study by the Oregon State University showed a seismic event on the Cascadia subduction zone could trigger the San Andreas fault line.

“We’re used to hearing the ‘Big One’ – Cascadia – being this catastrophic huge thing,” said Chris Goldfinger, a marine geologist at the college and lead author of the study. Goldfinger says if both faults went off, it would be a multi-state and international emergency situation spanning from San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, to Vancouver.