Throughout California’s history, the state has experienced thousands of earthquakes and spent millions of dollars to repair their beautiful cities. August 24^th, 3:20 AM, residents of Northern California and those living up to 200 miles away were awoken by a violent jolt of the surface caused by a 6.0 magnitude earthquake. The wine country of Napa, has been badly destroyed along with their famous wineries. Many historic buildings have been turned into rubble leaving a broken city.

“For the wine industry, this earthquake won’t be that disruptive. It’s the people of Napa who will feel the disruption,” David Duncan tells LA Times reporters.

President and chief executive of Silver Oak Wine, David Duncan, felt the wrath of the earthquake and understands the expected downfall of economic prospect from the wine business. The earthquake destroyed thousands of collections of expensive wines throughout Northern California. Without that profit, owners and sellers will be suffering financially. Many have been clearing out underground cellars of their stores hoping the aftershocks do not cause any more damage than what has already been done.

According to reports, 172 people were rushed to the hospitals with injuries including a 13-year old boy whose fireplace collapsed on top of him; he is now in critical condition. Many have broken bones and respiratory conditions, but doctors say many were coming in for injuries that came from trying to clean up the wreckage. California officials calculate about $1 billion dollars in architectural damage, including homes, trailers, and stores. There have been 90-100 homes that have been ruled uninhabitable, and officials are warning homeowners about the possibility of aftershocks and their potential damage they may cause. Consequently, about 70,000 homes have lost power and public safety is doing all they can to protect the well-being of their residents.

Residents have opened up their doors to those in need along with evacuation centers that provide food and any supplies that is missing from any homes. This 6.0 magnitude earthquake is the strongest California has seen in 25 years.

Governor Jerry Brown has declared a state of emergency to help with recovery.

“We’re here for the long run,” Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom told CNN. “Not just when we’re putting out fires — literally.”

FSA Connection Questions

1. In the article, the author describes how the earthquake has destroyed the people but not the wine industry, why is that?
2. Summarize the article in two or more sentence explaining key points of the tragic event and how they will affect future businesses.
3. Throughout the article, the author describes many incidents that resulted from the earthquake. What sentence best supports and describes the architectural damage to California?
4. In the piece, what does the word vintage relate to?
5. Select one word that best describes the tone of the story.