On Sept. 21, 1993, the largest earthquake in Oregon since 1873 struck Klamath Falls in the form of two pre-dawn, 6-magnitude shocks within an hour and 17 minutes of each other. They were felt as far north as Eugene and as far south as Chico, Calif. A rock-fall boulder crushed a car on Hwy 97, killing the driver, and another person died of a heart attack. The violent shaking caused some $10 million in damages to 1,000 homes and other buildings, among them the county courthouse.
A Western Oregon University study after the quake cited a state report that warned many Klamath County schools and public safety buildings could collapse in another large earthquake. The study acknowledged that Klamath Falls had made “some progress … by enacting a dangerous building ordinance and retrofitting some buildings.”
A regional geologist for Southwest Oregon was quoted as saying he was watching football in a Roseburg hotel room when the quake hit. He said, “I remember the Denver Broncos were playing, because John Elway got tackled, then I felt the hotel shake. I thought, ‘That was a pretty good tackle!’
Source: Christensen, Arne. "A Day to Remember." Chronicling the Nisqually Earthquake and Other Northwest Quakes. Ed. Arne Christensen. 28 Feb. 2001. Web. 17 Oct. 2013. "Historic Earthquakes: Klamath Falls, Oregon." Earthquake Hazards Program. U.S. Geological Survey, 1 Nov. 2012. Web. 17 Oct. 2013.
