Sunday, August 24, 2014

[Geology2] 6.0 quake wakes up Bay Area



6.0 quake wakes up Bay Area

Bay Area News Group staff

Posted:   08/24/2014 03:53:39 AM PDT

A magnitude 6.0 earthquake rolled through the Bay Area and beyond early Sunday in what will likely end up as the largest temblor to hit the region since the infamous Loma Prieta earthquake 25 years ago, authorities said.

The quake was reported at 3:20 a.m. and was centered 4 miles northwest of American Canyon and 6 miles southwest of Napa, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Seconds after the shaking, which lasted upward of 30 seconds in some parts, social media was flooded with witness accounts of the earthquake, including from law-enforcement and emergency personnel in the area.
A smattering of aftershocks did not surpass magnitude 2.5.
PG&E reported severe outages in areas near Napa and Santa Rosa. Reports of downed power lines surfaced throughout the Bay Area. The California Highway Patrol and Caltrans are examining the major bridges but no closures have been ordered.
Many residents in the area near the epicenter reported some damage to their homes and sirens heard in the streets, but no major injuries or damage were immediately reported there or in outlying areas like San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose.
The quake was felt in a stretch of area spanning upward of 100 miles. According to initial USGS data, it was categorized as "severe" in how the shaking was perceived, though user-reported data deemed it on a lower degree, as "strong."
If the magnitude rating holds, it will be the largest earthquake to hit the Bay Area since the Loma Prieta episode in 1989 that measured 6.9. The largest on record was the historic 7.8 earthquake that hit San Francisco in 1906.

Source: http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_26396961/6-0-quake-wakes-up-bay-area



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Posted by: Kim Noyes <kimnoyes@gmail.com>



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