The crystal chandelier began to jingle as the thousand crystals of the huge lighting fixture clanged together like a wind chime outside a Chicago apartment. At first, it was subtle, almost musical. But, as the intensity of the Southern California earthquake increased, the chime-like sound became deafening and disturbing.
Mark, a tanned 16-year-old boy from New Zealand, sprang from his bed as the rolling motion and thunderous noises woke him. It was his first experience in a “shaker” and he was not enjoying the ride.
As he tried to walk across the apartment floor, he felt wobbly and unstable. Sure he would fall down anyway, Mark sat on the floor and, waiting for the motion to stop, thought about his family and how they would have reacted if they were with him.
Within a few seconds, the rumbling stopped; the floor became stable once again; and the tinkling of the crystals silenced. Mark looked around the room and for a moment, thought it was in his head. The only evidence that anything had occurred was the slightest sway of the chandelier.