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You'll probably live through the big earthquake. Are we ready for the aftermath?

caption: A scene from a simulation by the Washington State Department of Transportation of what could happen if a massive earthquake hits the Alaskan Way Viaduct.
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A scene from a simulation by the Washington State Department of Transportation of what could happen if a massive earthquake hits the Alaskan Way Viaduct.
YouTube/WSDOT

There will be a time — it could be tomorrow, it could be 100 years from now —when the ground beneath us will start to shake.

Buildings will crumble. Roads will be destroyed. And then a 60-foot wall of water will crash onto the Washington coast line.

The West Coast is a ticking time bomb. The big earthquake will come. Will you be ready?

You could be, says Dr. Lucy Jones. She is the author of the new book, "The Big Ones: How Natural Disasters Have Shaped Us," and spoke with Bill Radke about dealing with the aftermath of an earthquake.

Why you can trust KUOW