Woman's Pool Turns Into Mini-Tsunami During California Earthquake

When the ground started shaking during the 7.1 magnitude quake, big waves formed in the pool.

The woman who tried to save her phone when her swimming pool during California’s 7.1 earthquake is talking about her scare.

"I was so scared that I was going to end up back in that pool," Debra Bruegl told Inside Edition. 

Debra Bruegl said she jumped out of her pool when she felt the ground start shaking last week. Feeling unsteady, she sat but she was stunned when her pool water turned into giant waves. She raised her arm in the air to also save her phone from getting soaked. 

"I was screaming for my husband and all of a sudden the water was coming and I was holding my phone, trying to figure out how to try and text him," she said. 

Bruegl said she had just texted her husband that she needed help. She was also screaming for him, and when he heard, he ran out to save her. 

"These tsunami waves were coming out of the pool, and I just came out and grabbed her phone and then her," he told Inside Edition. 

The dramatic footage caught the attention of Jimmy Kimmel who joked about it Monday night. 

“This pool had a mini-tsunami. Is this one those mini fans she's holding up in the air?” he joked. 

The quakes caused big ruptures in the earth's surface, which are now becoming a tourist attraction.

RELATED STORIES