By Desiree Salas (media@latinospost.com) | First Posted: Jul 23, 2015 06:00 AM EDT

Can earthquakes ever be predicted? A U.S. Geological Survey scientist recently warned that a big one may affect Bay Area residents in California.

"The population is now 100 times bigger in the East Bay, so we have many more people that will be impacted," Tom Brocher, a USGS research geophysicist told CBS San Francisco.

"We keep a close eye on the Hayward Fault because it does sit in the heart of the Bay Area and when we do get a big earthquake on it, it's going to have a big impact on the entire Bay Area," he explained. "The past five major earthquakes on the fault have been about 140 years apart, and now we're 147 years from that 1868 earthquake, so we definitely feel that could happen any time."

Incidentally, a 4.1 magnitude quake rocked the Bay Area Tuesday dawn. The said earthquake was triggered by the Hayward Fault but did not cause much damage or harm. The said incident also may appear to strengthen Brocher's prediction; it also prompted the researcher to comment that the recent quake "was not likely to have much of an impact one way or the other on the likelihood of a major earthquake occurring on the same fault."

Back in 2008, a report said that "there was a 31 per cent chance of a 6.7-magnitude or larger earthquake on the Hayward-Rodgers Creek Fault system over the next 30 years," as noted by MailOnline.

Based on Brocher's estimations, this report's forecast appear considerably delayed. The geophysicist however admitted that there is "currently no scientific basis for making a prediction for when that earthquake will occur."

However, he suggested that residents do what they can to get ready for the quake.

The last major quake triggered by the Hayward Fault happened in 1868, killing 30 people. It "caused extensive damage in the Bay Area, particularly in the city of Hayward, from which the fault gets its name," according to KRON 4.

"Until the larger 1906 earthquake, it was widely referred to as the 'Great San Francisco Earthquake,'" the news agency added.

Meanwhile, Metabunk.org posted a piece that debunked Brocher's seemingly doomsday-sounding declaration. The piece clarified Brocher's statements, even getting the researcher to admit that his comments were "misrepresented."

"There was a misunderstanding between the words 'could' and 'will.' The Hayward fault is capable of producing a major earthquake at any time, but there is currently no scientific basis for making a prediction for when that earthquake will occur," Brocher told the site.

"Geologic studies at Tule Pond (in Fremont) on the southern end of the Hayward fault have shown that the average interval between the past 5 surface-rupturing earthquakes has been 140 plus or minus 50 years. The average interval of the past 11 earthquakes on this segment of the fault is 170 plus or minus 80 years," Brocher explained further.

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