2008-05-13 08:38:39 - Washington experts have made it official: "Earthquakes are a national hazard". You should prepare.

Your fear of an earthquake in your own backyard is not entirely groundless, especially if you live on the West Coast, the East Coast or most anywhere in between.

Our government's own U.S. Geological Survey says 'earthquakes are a national hazard'. Their experts state it clearly -- earthquakes pose 'a serious threat' in 46 of the United States.

Federal experts in

April 2008 predicted with 99% certainty that a magnitude 6.7 or larger earthquake will hit California within 30 years. They pegged the likelihood of an even more devastating 'major' quake -- 7.5 or greater - within that time at 46%.

The entire Western U.S. is known for its active earth-shifting tendency. University of Nevada seismologist John Anderson says that statistically, Western Nevada can expect a big earthquake every 25 to 30 years. The last was in 1954. (Uh-oh!) The next big one could be today, tomorrow, next month, next year or years in the future, he told the press.

Earthquakes are not limited to 'earthquake country', as the Western states are sometimes called. The early-morning April 18, 2008, quake that shook parts of Illinois proved that. As buildings shook from Kansas to Georgia from that relatively small 5.2 shocker, it proved another point - similar sized earthquakes are felt over greater distances in the East than those occurring in the West. A USGS spokesman adds, "Earthquakes in the central U.S. are infrequent, but not unexpected."

The same can be said for the Eastern U.S. Back in February 1774, colonial Virginia and North Carolina shook violently. New Madrid, Missouri, was epicenter for three big quakes from December 1811 through February 1812; they were felt strongly in Virginia. An 1833 quake violently rattled states from Maryland to North Carolina. Many other rattlers followed, with the latest just days ago, on May 6 in Virginia, again.

Here's a list of some of this year's earthquakes (if your state isn't on it, just wait a little):

China, May 12, 7.9 magnitude with some 10,000 dead
Guam, May 9, 6.7
Japan, May 7, 6.8
Virginia, May 6, 1.8
Alaska, May 2, 6.6
California, April 30, 5.4
Nevada, April 26, 4.7
Illinois, April 18, 5.2
Indonesia, February 20, 7.5

For useful information and links on earthquake preparedness, safety gear, data security and more, visit www.QuakeCountdown.com. The Earthquake Country Alliance offers some excellent advice at www.earthquakecountry.info.