Earthquake-wise Victoria and Vancouver are not that bad

Got a note from somebody in Victoria, who had the earthquake jitters.  You can see out in the ocean, the great Cascadia Subduction Zone.  Really, this poses no great threat to Victoria and Vancouver.  We can probably only expect 10 cm/s PGV to these cities from an M9.  No tsunami can hit them, but you must expect some sort of water rise in the channels, but I think the main water surge will just bounce off the rocks, and back into the ocean.

As with almost all cities, with beautiful earthquake scenery, the biggest threat is the urban M7 earthquake, just like Kobe Japan.  This is not something to get the jitters over, and is not a good reason to move to Toronto, which is under the same threat.  You have to do the usual things:  check your foundation, secure heavy objects, have an emergency kit, etc.