Landslide fissure in Forest of Nisene Marks State Park, Santa Cruz County, California

One of many fissures along the Big Slide Trail located in the Forest of Nisene Marks State Park in Santa Cruz County. This was one of several large fissures that opened at the headwall escarpment area of a large landslide complex as a result of groundshaking near the epicenter of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. The magnitude 6.9 Loma Prieta earthquake of October 17, 1989 occurred at 4:15 pm and lasted between 10 and 15 seconds. The earthquake initiated or activated dormant landslides throughout the southern Santa Cruz Mountains.

The URL of this page is http://3dparks.wr.usgs.gov/landslide/big/13.htm