If I lived in the Pacific Northwest, I'd be concerned right about now:

Using underwater mapping techniques, scientists have mapped the Cascadia Subduction Zone - a 600-mile fault line extending from southern Canada to northern California - in never before seen detail.

It has revealed that the fault splits into four segments instead of being one continuous strip like most fault lines. The discovery could prove more catastrophic because the tectonic plates can slide under each other, creating more pressure and more severe earthquakes.

Translation:

Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration. But the potential for loss of life and damage of property is nevertheless exceptionally high.

One of the study's co-authors said that "for places like Tacoma and Seattle," the new findings "could mean the difference between alarming and catastrophic:"

We have the potential for earthquakes and tsunamis as large as the biggest ones we've experienced on the planet. ...

Cascadia seems capable of generating a magnitude nine or a little smaller or a little bigger.

Just to be clear, "magnitude nine" is nearly as high as an earthquake can go. Few earthquakes reach nine or above; those that do tend to be horrifically devastating.

As an example, the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was about a 9.2 — and you'll remember what a horrific disaster that was:

It's more urgent than ever that authorities in the U.S. respond to the new study: The lead author says all emergency models are based on "old, low-quality 1980s-era data:"

Neither Oregon nor Washington state is sufficiently prepared for this type of disaster because of the limited information in the 1980s Cascadia model, according to the researchers.

They'd better get prepared. You can't figure this thing out once the shaking starts!

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