00:00Imagine standing on the U.S. West Coast when suddenly the ocean pulls back.
00:04And then a wall of water nearly 1,000 feet high races toward you.
00:08Scientists say this isn't a movie.
00:10It's a real threat building beneath our feet.
00:12Deep under the Pacific lies the Cascadia subduction zone,
00:16a massive fault stretching 600 miles from California to Canada.
00:20And researchers warn it could unleash a mega-tsunami that kills millions in minutes.
00:24They say there's a significant chance of a magnitude 8 or stronger quake within the next 50 years.
00:30And by the year 2100, they believe one is almost guaranteed.
00:34If this fault ruptures, the impact would be instant and catastrophic.
00:39Entire sections of coastline could drop more than 6 feet.
00:42Cities like Seattle and Portland could be overwhelmed within minutes.
00:45And towering waves could swallow buildings, roads, and entire neighborhoods.
00:50Scientists warn that rising sea levels might make the tsunami even more deadly.
00:54And once the water finally drains away,
00:57the land could remain permanently lower for decades or even centuries.
01:01They say the last mega-quake here hit in 1700, and it wiped out whole communities.
01:06Now experts urge leaders to act fast.
01:09Because the next one may already be on its way.
01:12The question isn't if this tsunami will hit.
01:14It's whether we'll be ready when it does.
01:16The sun can'tate eight-deiliśmy lights.
01:16So there's not going to challenge the sun.
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