Community Corner

Two Shakers Rattle East Bay on "ShakeOut" Day

Two earthquakes centered in Berkeley — a 4.0 magnitude and a 3.8 — gave sharp jolts to the East Bay this afternoon and tonight, Thursday, which happened to be the "California ShakeOut" quake drill day.

The U.S. Geological Survey reported the East Bay was shaken by two earthquakes centered in Berkeley near the Hayward Fault this afternoon and tonight, Thursday, coinciding with a statewide quake-drill day known as the Great California ShakeOut.

The first tremor, centered at College Avenue and Webster Street in the city's Elmwood district, struck at 2:41 p.m. and registered 4.0 magnitude, the USGS reported. Several people reported to USGS that the quake was felt as far away as Sacramento, and one person said it was felt 239 miles away in Lompoc.

The second hit at 8:16 p.m. and was centered next to the International House and the UC Berkeley Boalt School of Law at Piedmont Avenue and Bancroft Way. It registered 3.8 magnitude, according to the USGS.

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One family in the Berkeley Hills reported their TV fell off its perch in tonight's quake but did not break. It was reported to have been felt as far away at Santa Cruz.

The two quakes were near the epicenter of a 3.3-magnitude tremor that struck next to Cal's Clark Kerr campus on July 16.

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All three locations are close to the Hayward Fault. This evening's 3.8 quake was about 400 feet west of the fault's main trace which runs through the middle of the nearby Cal stadium.

Many seismologists believe the fault most likely to cause the next big devastating quake is the Hayward.

Today's two shakers follow three others of similar size that struck near the Oakland Zoo, also very near the Hayward Fault, in August and September.

The Great California ShakeOut today featured a wide variety of exercises. Many schools practiced drills, and in the Bay Area, BART halted trains for a minute at 10:21 a.m. to observe the drill, and then experienced 15-minute systemwide delays following of the two quakes.

Did you feel today's quakes? Let us know in the comments.


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