Bay Area earthquake: PG&E conducts emergency drill in preparation for major earthquake on San Francisco's Treasure Island

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — Treasure Island was the site of a powerful earthquake Tuesday. It was part of an exercise to simulate severe damage to gas lines from a future earthquake.

Plumes of smoke, flames and sounds of gas emanated from nearby damaged lines in the neighborhood.

Although it's just a drill, San Francisco Fire Chief Jeanine Nicholson says this is just part of the damage the city could see in the event of an earthquake.

She said: “There will be a 7-magnitude earthquake, and a lot will happen. Multiple fires, several wires falling, and many people being injured and trapped.”

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It's something firefighters train for all year long.

But on Tuesday, about three dozen PG&E workers came to train with them at Treasure Island.

“Part of it is learning to speak the same language so we can communicate more effectively in a real-world emergency,” PG&E spokesman Jason King said.

“Practicing response in a controlled environment like this would help us be more effective in making communities safer in the event of a real-world event,” he said.

More: ShakeAlert earthquake warning system now uses GPS data to determine its magnitude

PG&E crews focused on damaged gas lines and downed power lines, responded to several different scenarios, and learned how to effectively cooperate with emergency workers.

“We're going to have to learn to be smart and be smart in our coordination with the San Francisco Fire Department in an event like this,” King said.

MORE: The fault line that caused the 2014 Napa quake is longer, potentially stronger than previously thought: USGS

Chief Nicholson says the goal of this exercise is to find strengths and weaknesses between PG&E and first responders.

“It's imperative that we do this in real time today because this is what will be expected of all of us when the major disaster strikes. So we're not just marching and pointing things out, we're practicing as if we were marching to play,” Chief Nicholson said.

Because, she says, it's not a question of if it will happen or not, but when the next big disaster will happen.

Click here for the latest stories and videos about earthquakes here in the Bay Area and around the world, and click here for more information about disaster preparedness.

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