Most in Bay Area Give Response High Marks

While most Bay Area residents were frightened by the earthquake Tuesday, most are extremely pleased with police and emergency responses and feel their communities were prepared, and few plan to leave the area, a Gallup Poll conducted Wednesday shows.

According to the poll, 41% had damaged homes or personal property, most of it minor. In Santa Clara County, 65% reported property damage. About half of those reporting damage estimated their repairs at less than $100.

About 62% of Bay Area residents said their communities were prepared to deal with an earthquake as severe as Tuesday’s, while about half said they felt they personally were prepared.

Police and other emergency-service workers got very high ratings, with 60% saying response was excellent and 24% saying it was good. Only 5% said police response was “only fair” or “poor.”

Interviews were conducted by telephone in six of the counties affected by the earthquake, after most restrictions on telephone calls were lifted. Interviewers could not reach many who suffered the most severe damage and personal injury, and no interviews were conducted in San Benito or Santa Cruz counties.

Only about 37% of the respondents said they were personally “very frightened” when the earthquake struck. Twenty-nine percent said they were somewhat frightened, 18% said they were not too frightened and 15% claim not to have been frightened at all.

Bay Area residents said their neighbors handled the crisis well, with 42% saying neighbors did an “excellent” job responding to the disaster, and 29% saying their neighbors did a good job. Nine percent gave low ratings to their neighbors.

A majority of residents believed the earthquake was not the “Big One” that experts have predicted could strike the area in coming decades.

But despite their widespread expectation of worse quakes to come, almost all respondents said they plan to stay in the Bay Area. Ninety-two percent said they are not thinking about moving to another location as a result of the earthquake, while 7% are considering a move.

Results were based on telephone interviews with a randomly selected sample of 509 adults, 18 and older. The margin of error was plus or minus 5%.