The Loma Prieta Earthquake Was 23 Years Ago Today—Where Were You?

At 5:04 p.m. on Oct. 17, 1989 the ground throughout the Bay Area shook.

A lot of the area's attention was focused on the World Series game that was about to start between the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics at Candlestick Park, but suddenly sports was insignificant as a 6.9 quake centered at Loma Prieta in the Forest Nisene Marks State Park rocked Northern California.

The shaking could be felt in nearly all parts of the Bay Area. Many in the North Bay sustained far less damage than their neighbors to the south but nevertheless have vivid memories of that fateful day.

In Marin, a bevy of residents shared their stories for the 20th anniversary of the quake. In the Sacramento region, the quake was not as powerful, but some of our readers who were in the Bay Area at the time of the quake are now living in or near the state capital.

What do you remember about Oct. 17, 1989? How has your life changed since then?

Was the area successful in rebuilding? Are we better prepared than we were 23 years ago?

Have we learned from the disaster?