Loma Prieta Earthquake Live - KXTV News 10 

I was in Fresno and the water in my spaghetti pot sloshed over the side onto the stove and floor! A little neighbor girl was knocking oon the front door and I grabbed her just as a pice of stucco dropped onto the concrete porch. I know our concrete foundation cracked as the next 2 days, red ants were coming up and bringing their sand hills thru the carpets! A day, much like the Coalinga quake that Fresno will never forget!

Dick Cable, along with Stan Atkinson, was the face of television news in Sacramento for more than three decades. Dick is retired, still lives in Sacramento, and on occassion returns to the News10 newsroom which several years ago was named in his honor.

I was that reporter "on the phone." Not sure what you're getting at but there was nothing shady about it ... except your comment here.

Look at their reactions when he said that the the double decker freeway collapsed. One of those moments, you know? It kinda reminds me of when Peter Jennings found out the South Tower had completely collapsed.

still gives me chills, even after 21 years after the damage. one of those moments where you could never forget.

So many years later, and I still cry when I hear this... I will never forget 😥

It was on this day today that Jennifer Smith and Dick Cable were one of the most famous pairs of news reporters that almost every household knew back in the day. You still have news veterans like Dan Adams , George Warren, etc working at KXTV to this day an you know what quality news reporting is all about. It feels like yesterday.

Two of the finest anchors a producer could ever hope to work with.

Yes, she is. Jennifer has the greatest longevity of any anchor in the Sacramento market and is likely the most respected. She is truly a rarity in local television these days.

I was in this earthquake I was working downtown and 26 California St at the Embercadero when it hit. One of those things you just never forget in life.

I was in my car driving somewhere in Sacramento that day, and I felt nothing. I remember seeing the footage of the car driving over the collapsed part of the Bay Bridge over and over again. I had gotten a job driving and making deliveries to the Bay Area only a couple of months after the earthquake. Every day I would drive over the lighter-colored repaired section of the bridge, and I would get an eerie feeling wondering if another earthquake would hit when I was on the bridge.

Sacramento was very lucky to have so many great television news people when I lived there in the 1970's and 1980's. I had left by the time this happened and was very surprised to see this come up while searching for clips on this earthquake's anniversary. I shudder to think how some of today's local news goobers will act under similar conditions. Meanwhile, and in a reference only you older folks from the area will get, Dick Cable was as calm as Tom La Brie selling a water bed. :-D

Mattkaru: Are you suggesting this is a re-creation? It is not. It is live as the quake hit Sacramento. Yes, it took longer for the shock waves to reach Sacramento than San Francisco. And the quake was not felt as strongly in Sacramento as it was SF, which is why the Sac stations were not knocked off the air while the SF stations were.

I remember this Earth quake, i was 5, scared the hell out of me.

"I can still feel it rocking, Dick!" A News interchange.

I lived on Edison Avenue then & we felt it & it made the water come out of the pool and go 40 feet across the driveway & hit my friends front door. My mother lived in downtown SF & no one could enter or leave because of the electric door locks didn't work when power went out.

We felt this all the way down in SoCal in the San Bernardino area. I was 12 and remember it clearly.

That's his name. Dick Cable. He is now retired, but was one of the most respected TV anchors in Northern California.

I was in the kitchen getting a drink and talking to my sister when it happened. I'm in a wheelchair and got stuck in the chopping block as it happened. i yelled at my sister to find cover. She didn't listen but we had no damage ! It was very scary...

Actually, the quake hit as the commercial was playing. KXTV dumped out of the commerical break as the shaking continued. For nearly 24 hours, all commericals were dropped on KXTV as well as most Bay Area stations (those that were still on the air).

Originally from Ohio, I spent years in Santa Barbara and went through one 5.1 while there. So when I decided to move to San Francisco, I told my inner self that I was doing this because the big one was about to hit down there. Three years later Loma Prieta. lol

I'm amazed how calm they were and how they remained professional and still continued to go on reporting the news during the earthquake I tell one thing i'd have been out of that building panicing feeling terrified and just wondering what was going on.

I remember those perms and the square shoulders.

I was watching that very scene on my tv. I was living in stockton california at that time. We had no damage but the house shook for what seemed like forever. I recall seeing the water from our swimming pool splashing out onto the deck. Amazingly the pool plaster had no damage...not sure how that is possible but it is.

I was six years old when this occurred (I live in Santa Cruz by the way), and my mom and sister were actually getting ready to go to the grocery store when the earthquake struck. The worse thing to happen to us was the collapse of our chimney. The rest of the house wasn't so badly damaged though.

I was on Oakland at that time. I ran out the door fast.

I was watching News10 during this broadcast.

They are so professional just listening and trying to come up to speed with what they are realizing has been a major disaster in the Bay Area.

Compare these two calm 1989 professionals from NorCal to the hysterical 2019 TV newscasters in SoCal who panicked on air.

i can still feel it rocking, Dick!

I was driving east to Sacramento from Dixon, CA on the I-80 when all of a sudden my left arm bounced on the window sill of my old truck. It actually smarted my arm. I was thinking "What the heck was that!".

I met Jennifer smith at a Girl Scout function. On tv she seems a plain Jane. In person she is incredibly beautiful. Her eyes stand out the most. She’s nearly six feet tall, too

I was working at the Santa Clara Marriott when it hit. Strong aftershock too.

I remember watching these two doing the news casts a lot. Lived in North Highlands at the time. I didn't feel it (was driving on the freeway at the moment) but I remember seeing home videos of pools in Sacramento tossing water for several feet away from the pool. Some parents of swim team members from Foothill High School went to the World Series game and when the pool water started splashing the team coach joked that SF was having an earthquake. Imagine how he felt when he heard that there really was a quake.

I was eating dinner at the CHP Academy in West Sacramento (CTCIV89). Never felt a thing!

I was 25 miles south of S.F. in Redwood City It was a day I will never forget

I was on Market Street & 6th Street in SF on 3rd floor of a tall building! Iwill Never forget that day!

I live on the east coast of the US and I was a Boston Celtics pre-season basketball game that night and at one point, I left my seat to go to the concession stand or something and when I got out to the concourse, they was a guy, who was somewhat frantic, talking to anyone would listen about an earthquake in SF bay area. I thought he was a crackpot, I mean, the world series was on, didn't seem likely for there to be an earthquake during the World Series. There were no cellphones or internet, naturally, so my friend and I just chalked it up to this guy being a loon. We watched the rest of the game, went home and when we got back to my house, I turned on the tv and sure enough, there was Dan Rather on the air talking about the earthquake. This was about 1030pm Eastern time. We watched the news for quite a while that night.

1989 can see that tear in the video, i always love going slightly ahead in time and seeing when the tears and dots disseapear. 1999 still has imperfections but they are mostly gone by 2005

Felt it all the way into the Sierra Nevada Foothills!

"Kentucky fried chicken"

Weird, in Davis we could totally feel it... like being on a boat in intense but not dangerous waves.

You can see the bated fear on the newslady's face. That must have been awful to be hearing that live as it happened.

Way different than the effects in Santa Cruz which is about 8 miles from the epicenter. It was a violent jolt then tremendous shaking, then it was over. Only lasted 15 seconds. The scariest earthquake I've ever felt here and I've lived in California all of my life.

Man I could sure go for some Kentucky Fried Chicken about now

While there is news coverage included following the actual quake, the first section of the video shows the reaction in the studio while it is shaking and as the quake occurred. It was live. I suggest you watch it again.

Dick Cable and Jennifer Smith

I worked on the bottom floor of a building in downtown Monterey. The lights went out just before the building started shaking. There was no electricity or phone service, so they sent us home. Highway 1 was at a standstill and the EBS kept saying "There has been an earthquake". (NO SHIT SHERLOCK; I DIDN'T THINK IT WAS MY ENGINE) We lived in Ft Ord where my husband was stationed at the time. We had a great view of the Monterey Peninsula. It was almost totally dark and quiet. Obviously the planes couldn't land there. Eerie.

If you still have the tape, is it possible to Deinterlace this to 60fos and reupload? If you need more info as to what that means or how to do it, just ask me in a reply

Dick Cable with the presence of mind to suggest that the earthquake was likely not centered in Sacramento and wherever it was centered was encountering serious problems. Whatever happened to Dick?

I love this stuff!!!

I was in San jose durning this earthquake and it was a scarey moment...october 17 1989 at 5:04pm

ohh this news broadcast is centered in Sacramento...so that's why they don't feel much. I was in the middle of the earthquake when it happened...and it was one of the scariest things that ever happened to me. It was the first time I couldn't even stand at all and had to crawl for cover

Oct 17 1989 5:04pm A diary. I don’t know what just happened. I’m scared guys, I need to get some info. Oct 17 1989 5:15pm Alright, the bay bridge has collapsed, I think I’m gonna cry!! Oct 17 1989 5:27pm I just got some info, The shaker was a 7.1 magnitude????!?!?!

I was living in Navato which is about 30 miles northwest of Loma Prieta. The quake was felt in and around Oakland and San Francisico.

LOL I can still feel it rockin', Dick. I was watching the World Series when this happened.

Yes, and Jennifer is still at News10.

I can imagine! The footage of the Japan earthquake last year is crazy. Growing up in NY we've only had 2 quakes that were noticeable. The Virginia quake in 2011 and a 5.0 quake in like 1987. Hearing everything shake from my bed at 6 AM was scary. I'm sure in California the magnitude overrides any familiarity that Californians have with quakes and is even scarier.

I was in the dorms at UC Davis and felt the shaking on the 3rd floor of the dorm building I lived in. I remember people in the building screaming and panicing and running outside.

The gal reminds me of Reba McEntire. Don't you agree?

The earthquake in Japan was MUCH eerier than the disaster of '89!! Just watching the land being erased by the tsunami was just too bone-chilling to watch!

It was actually Loma Prieta Peak, hence the name. The peak itself can easily be pointed out from anywhere in Santa Cruz. I can see it from my house.

Lived in Tennessee at the time and was watching the world series when this happened the ABC national network cut in I believe it was Ted Koppel at the national desk.

I think I'd be pretty nervous if I knew there had just been a potentially very serious earthquake and had to continue presenting the news not knowing what might have happened to my family and house.

And the Eastern span of the Bay Bridge has been COMPLETELY rebuilt, and it's a single, rather double level span.

Oh, and about whether it's "live" or not.. Technically, it's not. Quakes take time to travel from their epicenter to other areas. Even in today's (7/29) L.A. quake there were 5 second delays with people on the phone. So the quake in SF was probably already finished rocking by the time the newscasters were feeling it in Sacramento..

Looking at this video .. Notice Dick Cable's hands .. & shadows of the studio -light fixtures STILL moving ... You can tell Dick is "Quite" Nervious but trying to keep his composure while "On-Air" ....... Jennifer is calm & collective .. but is concerned about what's moving around in studio-ceiling ..... ... video worth viewing & learning from

I remember when I first heard about it, I was like 18 and mopping the floor of a laundry mat I was working at, then the boss said to me "California just fell into the ocean" as I went by, and I saw the news coverage on the TV he was watching.

"Oh great. We're working late tonight" says the expressions on the anchor's faces.

Watch the video and look for the shaking lights on the channel 10 emblem in the back ground and listen to what they're saying. They're reffering to everything in the present tense which means it was happening AS THEY SPEAK!

Were you watchin the game?

LOL! i picked up on that too. she can definatly still feel it rocking.

by the way Clips from Episode #107 of RESCUE 911 are on here it was the episode that had the 4th segment not shown because of this quake.

I LOLed so much at how the woman's demeanor changed completely once she heard the dude from SF.

Earthquakes are funny that way. I was working in Westchester County, NY when that Virginia quake from 2011 occurred. I went to my car for something, and when I came back everyone was outside. Apparently the building shook seriously but being 500 feet away outside, I didn't know anything had even happened. Now we were 300+ miles from the epicenter, but it's funny like how you were only 70-80 miles away from the SF quake and didn't even feel it. And that sucker was destructive.

Great, and I'm supposed to be in Sacramento the end of May 10'

Hate to put it this way, as this was a memorable tragic mess (a friend drove under that section of bridge a few hours prior) but news don't pay for itself, unless you are aware it is a tragic news event the ads roll and the show goes on.

love the reactions of the anchors at 4:14

i'm suprised that they didn't cut out of commercial scince it was going on for a minute!

I'll never forget the picture of the person driving their car over the crest of the collapsed bridge into oblivion.

true dat. Plus, there are multiple shakes. More than the quake itself and the aftershocks.

wow, the anchor lady seems to be quietly freaking out as the news comes in. Imagine what it must be like. I remember this quake. I was living in Santa Maria at the time and we felt it really strong there too....PS...is it just a bad video, or is the camera jumping and scrambling due to the shaking?

@robertgift The quake started while a commercial was on the air. The video picked up at the end of the commercial, just as the program went back to the anchors live.

@DigitalGrotto Yeah, they were trying to jump it and obviously didn't make it. The woman tourist filming it had an unforgettable reaction too.

It was felt in Bishop, California as well.

love their expressions at 4:15... like "holy CRAP!"

I was watching this when it happened. It WAS a very nauseating feeling.

I Remember The October 17,1989 (Loma Prieta Earthquake). I Just Turned Twenty Back Then. And I Was Very Petrified and Scared Back Then. I Thought Something Was Going Through This House at a High Speed.

I have never seen such footage, DigitalGrotto. Not calling you a liar, but need a little proof a camera was trained on the bridge at the time.

love that feeling

after the 1989 earthquake hit san francisco the next day an earthquake hit southeastern california i was 3 years old

where you from? where you felt a 5,3? in romania?

Nope 5:04 PM 10/17/89 Lest we forget

You can tell he's pretty terrified by his body language. Very strange for a veteran news anchor. I would be scared just watching him.

my history teacher was at the world series game when the earthquake hit. The first thing he thought was that the stadium seats could retract and he wasn't scared. lol but then the whole stadium shaked even harder and he was like oh crap earthquake and he was on a date with his girlfriend xD

you mean Novato? It's cool, I mispell the names of places I reside all of the time

trust me we have mini little earthquakes a lot in san diego and stuff will fall off my wall, but it feels like it happens for like two minutes, but when i watch the news the next day it lasted for like 10 seconds, and there are also aftershocks

Why were in a commercial already at 5:04? Can't broadcast for 5 minutes straight after the start of the 5 o'clock news without a break for commercials?

It's motion sickness. Your inner ear controls balance and equilibrium, and in an earthquake this balance is interrupted causing nausea and dizziness!

i was in woodland, ca. at the time, i didnt feel it but my mom did.