Cascadia Subduction Zone

Welcome to Surviving Cascadia — a website dedicated to providing a more comprehensive look at Cascadia megathrust earthquakes in the Pacific Northwest.

These earthquakes are some of the most powerful on the planet. When the next one hits, Cascadia is expected to be the largest disaster the United States has faced. Emergency responders will be overwhelmed. Individuals and families must prepare to be self-sufficient for the first two weeks following the disaster until help can arrive (longer for those living on the coast).

My name is Bridget Good. I work as a mitigation program analyst with the Oregon Department of Emergency Management (OEM). Disclaimer: this website is not affiliated with OEM. It is my personal endeavor. Through OEM, I’m given opportunities to attend earthquake- and tsunami-related events. My 4 most recent events are shown in this slideshow. A brief write-up on the CRESCENT event is available on page 6 of the August 2025 TsuInfo Issue and on CascadiaQuakes.org.

I also recently co-authored the State’s Tsunami Vertical Evacuation Structure Guidance document, currently under review, I serve as a backup on the Business Oregon Seismic Rehabilitation Grant Program Review Committee, and I help local jurisdictions manage federal mitigation grants, several pertaining to seismic retrofits.

Through these various activities, I routinely come across information about the Cascadia Subduction Zone. I’m passionate about this topic, and I want to share what I learn with the public. This website is my mechanism for doing so.

Dedicating time, money, and effort toward being “2-weeks-ready” is worth it. Individuals, families and communities commit to the task when they have a comprehensive image of what lies ahead—of what they’ll have to face. 

The good news is that many excellent, reputable Cascadia resources are available. Each fact provided by those sources is like a puzzle piece. Unfortunately, many of those resources—those puzzle pieces— are scattered, making it hard to gain that comprehensive image of what the finished puzzle looks like.

This website is a collection of puzzle pieces from reputable sources around the world. By consolidating some of the information here, I aim to provide a reliable resource that lessens the time community members must dedicate toward understanding Cascadia—so they can spend that time preparing for and Surviving Cascadia.

The puzzle will never be “complete”. Science continues to make advancements in this field, and I continue to research, to learn and to have collaborative conversations (asking my many, many questions). I also work full time, have three kiddos and two dogs…so this is a side project I get to when I have a free minute. For those reasons, Surviving Cascadia is a bit of a living document. I hope you’ll check back often. I’m so glad you’re here!