By David Krogh
Almost everyone living in Portland has learned at some time or other that Portland sits on geologic fault lines. And many long time residents can even recall feeling the occasional tremor. The most prevalent of the fault lines in Portland are the Portland Hills fault and the East Bank fault. According to the US Geological Survey (USGS), the East Bank fault is a concealed seismic fault line running along the east side of the Willamette River in Portland paralleling the Portland Hills fault (which is just west of the Willamette River). Geologic studies from the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) estimate major earth tremors are triggered every 1,000-2,000 years.
The book Tilt is a fictional story by first time book author and Portland resident Emma Pattee about one person’s experience with a major earthquake in modern day Portland. In the story, Annie, the main character, is nine months pregnant and has put off getting a crib for her expected baby. Her husband, Dom, also has a tendency to put off things. Their lack of planning and focus has created substantial frustration and anger within them both. As the story begins, Annie (who lives near Mt. Tabor) heads out to the IKEA store to look for a crib. As she shops, a massive earthquake occurs causing the walls and ceiling in the store to crumble. Annie is buried but helpful strangers extricate her from the rubble. However, both her phone and purse (with her car keys) are lost.
The story details Annie’s experience and hardship in having to abandon her car and make her way slowly by foot through rubble filled streets, first in search of her husband Dom and next to finally reach home before she either collapses from exhaustion or goes into labor (whichever comes first). What is extremely useful to the reader is the map at the front of the book which shows the area (with labels) where Annie is traveling. The book also includes many flashbacks to help the reader better understand Annie’s background and the intense emotions she is going through, both before and after the earthquake.
Pattee identifies herself as a climate journalist and fiction writer. She has been published for many years in several well known newspapers and periodicals. She attended both Portland Community College and Portland State University and graduated with a BFA from Emerson College. Pattee lives in Portland with her family.
Pattee got the idea for this story by shopping at IKEA when she was 37 weeks pregnant herself and feeling a minor earth tremor while there. That incident made her think about all the “what ifs” that could occur if there were an actual major earthquake at Portland.
The story itself is very realistic in that there will be a tremendous amount of building damage in case of a major earthquake due to all of the brick buildings in the City, including schools, most of which are not earthquake resistant. Similarly, communications will be down and streets blocked by rubble to the extent that travel will be extremely difficult. Fire and police will be the initial emergency responders, followed by damage assessors from street and utility bureaus. And it is very likely that the types of situations Annie found herself in could occur in real life.
One exception is noted, however. In the story, Annie was prevented from crossing the Morrison Bridge by military guards and two armored tanks. In reality, military assistance would be in the line of support and rescue capacities and consist of National Guard troops as activated by the Governor. Any blocking of bridges would likely be undertaken by either the police or Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) staff, not soldiers with tanks.
To better understand how the emergency response system would work for an actual major earthquake you can venture to the Portland Bureau of Emergency Management website (portland.gov/pbem) and read its Earthquake Response Plan along with Neighborhood Emergency Team (NET) information. The NET is a group of over 1,400 volunteers who are trained to assist with disaster communications, damage assessment and general support functions.
Pattee stated, “When I started this book, I was pregnant. But when I finished the book, I had a school-aged child. And in Oregon, we have over a thousand schools at a high risk of collapse during an earthquake. You cannot tell the story of a Cascadia earthquake without including the fact that hundreds of thousands of schoolchildren could be trapped in collapsed buildings.” The lesson Pattee suggests is that brick buildings (especially those of schools) need to be made earthquake resistant. How many of us even know which schools in Portland are compliant with earthquake standards or not?
The conclusion of the book is interesting and heart warming. However, several questions of interest are left unanswered. Does this mean there will be a sequel?
For additional information about Tilt and its author, visit simonandschuster.com/books/Tilt/Emma-Pattee/9781668055489 and emmapattee.com. Tilt is available online from the publisher, Simon and Schuster, and from other online and local booksellers.
Editor’s note: The article’s author formerly worked for the Portland Bureau of Emergency Management before it became the Bureau of Emergency Management.
