2017: Schweikert Voted To Create A Plan To Purchase And Install Earthquake Early Warning Systems For The Cascadia Subduction Zone. In March 2017, Schweikert voted for legislation that would have, according to Congressional Quarterly, "require[d] the Federal Emergency Management Agency to develop a plan for the purchase and installation of an earthquake early warning system for the 'Cascadia Subduction Zone,' which includes parts of Washington, Oregon and California. It would also [have] require[d] the president to establish a task force that would recommend what national preparations should be made to plan for, respond to and recover from an earthquake or tsunami event in the Cascadia Subduction Zone." The vote was on a motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill. The House agreed to the motion, thereby passing the bill, by a vote of 395 to 11. The Senate took no substantive action on the legislation. [House Vote 196, 3/27/17; Congressional Quarterly, 3/27/17; Congressional Actions, H.R. 654]
The Cascadia Subduction Zone Is 700 Miles Off The Pacific Coast Where The Juan De Fuca Tectonic Plate Is Sliding Under The North America Tectonic Plate. According to Congressional Quarterly, "The Cascadia subduction zone runs for 700 miles just off the Pacific coast of the United States from Cape Mendocino, Calif., to Northern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, and is the area where the Juan de Fuca tectonic plate is sliding under the North America tectonic plate, causing the North America plate to bulge upward. Scientists say that the plate will eventually rebound and that if the entire zone rebounds at once it would cause a mega-earthquake that triggers an enormous tsunami, with one wave headed toward Japan and the other hitting the U.S. coast about 15 minutes after the earthquake ends." [Congressional Quarterly, 3/24/17]
The Earthquake/Tsunami Caused By This Event, Which Has A 1 And 10 Chance For A Mega-Event In 50 Years, Would Kill 13,000 People And Leave 1 Million Homeless. According to Congressional Quarterly, "FEMA estimates that a Cascadia earthquake/tsunami event would kill 13,000 people, injure an additional 27,000, leave 1 million people homeless and leave 2.5 million in need of food and water. According to leading seismologists, the odds of a major earthquake/tsunami event in the next 50 years are roughly 1 in 3, while the odds of a mega-earthquake/tsunami event are roughly 1 in 10." [Congressional Quarterly, 3/24/17]