Earthquake rattles La Conner Sunday

Ted Taylor is fondly dubbed “Captain Catastrophe” because of his persistent calls for local emergency preparedness.

But the Skagit County Fire District 13 captain and emergency management coordinator might more accurately be called a realist.

That is especially true this week after the magnitude 4.3 earthquake centered south of Port Townsend that struck Sunday night and was felt in La Conner households and other locales throughout Western Washington.

Numerous La Conner area residents reported that the quake rattled furniture, some likening it to a strong gust of wind hitting their homes.

“I felt my bed shake,” said Jill Harden. “I was watching TV. I looked to see if my dog was moving around. She was sound asleep. It was a good three seconds, I’d say.”

Another resident, Nancy Alvord, initially thought – given that Halloween is just around the corner – that she and husband Dave were being pranked by her brother (and neighbor) Tom Zimmerman.

“We heard the screen door rattle and thought my brother was pranking us,” she said. “Both our recliners shook and our bedroom door was open and went almost closed.”

Interestingly, while numerous people felt the effects, others said they weren’t aware an earthquake had occurred.

Still, for Taylor, the brief rumble was affirmation of his ongoing efforts. In September, he led an emergency preparedness discussion in Shelter Bay and last week Taylor addressed the Oct. 19 Great ShakeOut event during his monthly report to fire district commissioners.

“It’s not a matter of if, but when, the Big One hits,” he said, repeating the refrain for which Taylor is perhaps best known.

Taylor’s sentiments were echoed late Sunday by Harold Tobin, director of the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, who told the media the quake was felt as far north as Vancouver, B.C. and as far south as Olympia.

“I really see an earthquake like this as a wakeup call for all of us,” said Tobin, “and a reminder that we live in earthquake country.”

Sandbags on the boardwalk

In La Conner, the threat of saltwater flooding has been foremost in the minds of Town officials all year. At the end of last week public works department staff placed sandbags at strategic points along the waterfront. Public Works Director Brian Lease said additional bags, designed to last two or three king tide flood seasons, are filled and ready to be moved as needed from behind the department’s building at La Conner Marina.

Meanwhile, Ecology Blocks are in place on the south waterfront off Caledonia Street and on the spacious Upper Skagit Indian Tribe property between Swinomish Channel and South Third Street. Blocks are stacked in reserve near the Town’s Caledonia Street pump station.

La Conner residents and business owners sustained nearly $2 million in flood damages last December when a combination of morning high tides, low atmospheric pressure, strong winds and rapid snow and ice melt-off pushed water from the channel onto low-lying areas in a matter of minutes.