Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake not mission-capable after Ridgecrest earthquakes

Saturday, July 6, 2019
RIDGECREST, Calif. -- The series of earthquakes that struck Southern California rendered Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake not mission-capable.

In a post to the base's Facebook page, Rear Admiral Bette Bolivar said non-essential active duty, drilling reservists, civilian employees and dependents are authorized to evacuate to a radius of within 100 miles of "safe haven" Naval Base Ventura County, near Point Mugu.

A base official told ABC News that the evacuation was not weapons-related; it was ordered due to infrastructure concerns in areas where employees live and work. The official said the public should not be concerned by the evacuation.
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China Lake remains accessible for mission-essential personnel only, and officials told non-mission-essential personnel not to attempt to access the installation.



Though the base is not mission-capable, security protocols remain in effect. Those with questions can call the base's family information hotline at 1-844-523-2025.



Friday's 7.1-magnitude quake struck at 8:19 p.m. Friday and was centered 11 miles from Ridgecrest, the same area of the Mojave Desert where a 6.4-magnitude temblor hit just a day earlier.

The installation "provides and maintains land, facilities and other assets that support the Navy's research, development, acquisition, testing and evaluation (RDAT&E) of cutting-edge weapons systems for the warfighter," according to the Navy. Covering more than 1.1 million acres, it is the Navy's largest single landholding.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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