Looting video predates California earthquake and tsunami warning

Kate Atkinson December 06, 2024
AAP FactCheck Feature Image Update 15 v2
This video depicts looting in 2023 and isn't related to California's recent tsunami alert.

WHAT WAS CLAIMED

A video shows looting in Californian retail stores after a tsunami warning on December 5, 2024.

OUR VERDICT

False. The video dates back to August 2023.

AAP FACTCHECK - Footage of looters ransacking a department store is being falsely linked to an earthquake that struck off the US West Coast. 

The footage is unrelated and was originally filmed in August 2023.

The video is being shared on social media after the magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck off the coast of northern California on December 5, 2024.

San Francisco's Ocean Beach during a tsunami warning on December 5, 2024. (AP PHOTO)

Coastal towns were evacuated after authorities issued a tsunami warning for 4.7 million residents of California and Oregon, but it was later cancelled.

"BREAKING NEWS: People have started looting their local retail stores after recent evacuations in California take place due to the Tsunami warnings.. #earthquake," reads the caption of a December 6 Facebook post, shared alongside the footage.

The post included a watermarked logo of the gambling company Stake.