San Andreas Earthquake

The San Andreas Earthquake is an event mentioned in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. At least two significant earthquakes have occurred, in 1988 and 1992.

Description
"All transit between Los Santos and the greater Red County area is still strictly limited following last month's earthquake. Officials are not confindent as to when things will open up again."

- An in-game radio announcer

Like much of the state of California which it is based on, San Andreas suffers from occasional earthquakes. A notable earthquake happened in 1992, around a month before the beginning of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and is mentioned several times in the news on radio stations. It is the cause of the closures of the inter-county bridges, which prevents the player from legally leaving Los Santos at the start of the game (despite the fact none of the closed bridges display any overt damage) and preventing residents from travelling across the state. Eventually, the bridges are repaired and reopened as the story progresses.

"In 1988, the Doherty district was devestated by an earthquake that leveled several blocks, and destroyed a countless number of properties. While most of the reconstruction has been completed, there are still visible signs of the earthquake's aftermath."

- Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas - City Guides

Four years earlier, in 1988, a much more powerful earthquake struck San Andreas. The earthquake devastated the Doherty area in San Fierro. Several blocks were leveled and buildings were destroyed, with a large section of an overhead roadway in neighboring Easter Basin collapsing. By 1992, most of the rebuilding had been completed, though in Doherty, a derelict patch of land and a few damaged buildings near the Driving School remained, along with a small section of the damaged roadway in Easter Basin.

Inspiration
The earthquake likely references the which caused heavy damage to the. In particular, a portion of San Fierro's Garver Bridge approach is collapsed in a way similar to the real-life collapses of both the in San Francisco and the  in.

Trivia

 * The game was originally supposed to feature earthquakes, where the ground would shake and cars would bounce up and down. While the code remains in the game, it cannot be activated and the feature is left unused.
 * Underneath the water off the coast of San Fierro, a fault line can be found.
 * In Bone County, a large rock formation appears to be collapsed onto itself. It is possible that this is the result of an earthquake.
 * Near Palomino Creek is a destroyed wooden bridge. This is possibly a result of the 1992 earthquake.

Reference
Trzęsienia ziemi w San Andreas Землетрясение в штате Сан-Андреас