Navy takes first steps toward rebuilding base rocked by twin earthquakes
J.D. Simkins
Civilian Department of Defense personnel, assigned to Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, dislodge damaged building equipment in 2019 after multiple earthquakes rattled the base. (MC1 Arthurgwain L. Marquez/Navy)
Independence Day weekend 2019 yielded twin earthquakes and thousands of aftershocks that rocked the California hamlet of Ridgecrest, buckling roads, igniting fractured natural gas lines and breaking home furnishing.
Also damaged was Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, a base that begins about three miles north of town and sprawls over 1.1 million acres. The 6.4 and 7.1 magnitude quakes rippled through the Mojave Desert installation, shaking its nearly 1,200 facilities where researchers create and test some of the world’s most advanced weapons.
About 20 percent of the installation’s buildings were declared unsafe, and many structures require replacement. According to a 2019 government report provided to Navy Times, estimated costs to get China Lake back to what officials call a mission capable status could reach up to $2 billion.
https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2020/04/23/navy-takes-first-steps-toward-rebuilding-base-rocked-by-twin-earthquakes/
