Malika Andrews, a host on ESPN, demonstrated she’s a cool cat under pressure and in an emergency situation, having handled herself like a total professional when an earthquake shook the city of Los Angeles where the studio is located where she was in the middle of a live broadcast. Not being from the West, where this kind of thing is known to happen on a somewhat frequent basis, I’m pretty sure I would have simply wet my pants and screamed like a girl. Good on Andrews for not doing what most of us what do in such a situation.
“The ‘NBA Today’ host was interviewing basketball analyst Rebecca Lobo via video call when the quake shook the walls of the studio and jolted the cameras, sending the broadcast into a brief state of disarray,” Variety said in a report on the earthquake.
According to The Western Journal, the quake was 4.4 on the scale and hit Los Angeles County around 12:20 pm local time. The epicenter of the quake was the Highland Park area, which is located to the northeast of downtown.
“We have a bit of an earthquake here in Los Angeles,” Andrews told the audience, pausing the interview. “So we’re just going to make sure that our studio lights [and] everything stays safe. Everything is shaking.” Right after this, she took a second to check in on her camera crew and the folks running the broadcast from the control room.
“Thank you so much for bearing with us through that. Our studio was shaking just a little bit,” Andrews said once again. “I appreciate you just bearing with us here.”
ESPN Los Angeles studio shaking from an earthquake during NBA Today and Malika Andrews handled it like a pro. pic.twitter.com/KPGndlCx01
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 12, 2024
Afterwards, Andrews got on social media platform X where she posted, “Definitely a scary moment here in our LA studios. Thank you to our incredible staff and crew who stayed cool throughout! Stay safe, fellow Angelenos.”
Lobo responded to Andrews’ handling of the quake scenario saying, “I was stunned by both the earthquake and how [Malika Andrews] handled it like a boss. Wow.”
I was stunned by both the earthquake and how @malika_andrews handled it like a boss. Wow. https://t.co/WZeRWsRUpb
— Rebecca Lobo (@RebeccaLobo) August 12, 2024
“It was a jolt,” one woman who teaches at a nursing school in Glendale told KABC. “And then the building just started to shake violently. It wasn’t those nice roll-y ones we get. I had to hold on to the door jamb.” Glendale was close to the epicenter.
Here's how some SoCal residents reacted when a 4.4-magnitude #earthquake struck Los Angeles County! 😖
More #quake info here: https://t.co/NdMaoPhY9X pic.twitter.com/pQKZTVc5WX
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) August 12, 2024
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass posted on X that earthquake mode for city government was triggered and that officials would be conducting a survey of the area for damage.
From @LAFD
LAFD personnel have surveyed the City of Los Angeles by land, air and sea following the 4.4 earthquake at 12:20 PM PST centered near Highland Park, CA (as updated by USGS).
No significant infrastructure damage or injuries have been noted within the City of LA. https://t.co/6VbRWZD58B
— LAPD HQ (@LAPDHQ) August 12, 2024
“No significant infrastructure damage or injuries have been noted within the City of LA,” the L.A. police department later said, providing an update on the situation, based on the fire department’s survey by land, air and sea.
There has been an unusual increase in earthquake activity around the globe, which has many folks worried that we might be headed for a major disaster. Could we be inching toward the long anticipated, “Big One,” that could wreak untold death and devastation in California and neighboring states?
Only God truly knows.
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