When We Believed in Mermaids: A Novel

On October 17, 1989, at 5:04 pm, a 6.9 magnitude earthquake centered at the Forest of Nisene Marks State Park in Santa Cruz County, California, shook the area for upward of 15 seconds. This earthquake is known at the Loma Prieta earthquake, named for the area of the San Andreas Fault system where the earthquake was centered. The earthquake was preceded by two foreshocks. The first took place in June of 1988 with a magnitude of 5.2, and the second took place in August of 1989 and had a magnitude of 5.3. These foreshocks took place within three miles of the Loma Prieta’s center and, although they took place on different sections of the fault, they are believed to have aided in the rupture sequence within the Loma Prieta quake. There were also as many as 51 aftershocks the day after the earthquake that reached 3.0 or greater in magnitude, and 16 the following day.

The Loma Prieta earthquake resulted in 63 deaths caused directly or indirectly by the earthquake and more than 3700 injuries. The highest number of deaths took place in Oakland, California, due to the collapse of the Cyprus Street Viaduct on the Nimitz Freeway. This collapse resulted in the crushing of multiple cars and caused the deaths of 43 people. A portion of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge also collapsed, killing one person. A non-destructive tsunami in Monterrey Bay was reported, as well as significant damage to the Marina District of San Francisco. It is believed that the loss of life would have been significantly higher if the third game of the 1989 World Series had not been about to begin when the earthquake hit. The teams playing in the World Series were the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics, and therefore many workers who would have been driving home at the time of the earthquake had either chosen to attend the game or remained at their place of business to attend watch parties. For this reason, rush hour traffic was much lighter in the area than it might have otherwise been, limiting the casualties.

In Santa Cruz, the setting of this novel, the Pacific Garden Mall suffered considerable damage with debris falling on customers and employees. Two buildings, Ford’s department store and Santa Fe Coffee Roasting Company, collapsed. One woman was pulled from the coffee house alive, while two women were killed. An additional victim was found in the debris of Ford’s. Thirty-one buildings in Santa Cruz were considered damaged enough to require demolition, including seven historic buildings, five of which had survived the 1908 San Francisco earthquake.

The Loma Prieta earthquake plays an important role in the plot of When We Believed in Mermaids due to its role in the lives of the two main characters, Kit and Josie/Mari Bianci. These characters were raised in Santa Cruz where their parents owned the restaurant, Eden. During the earthquake, Josie/Mari suffers a blow to the head from falling debris that leaves her with a permanent scar. Kit is at home with her father when the earthquake hits. Kit escapes the house just moments before it and the restaurant slid down the cliff on which they were perched, taking with them Kit’s father and all the family’s possessions.