4.4 earthquake rattles Bay Area
BERKELEY, Calif. - A 4.4 magnitude earthquake shook the Bay Area early Thursday morning.
The quake struck at 2:39 a.m. and was centered two miles east/southeast of Berkeley on the Hayward fault according to the USGS.
Keith Knudsen with the USGS in Menlo Park said there hadn't been a major earthquake on the Hayward fault in over 100 years. A magnitude 6.8 tremblor struck the Hayward fault on October 21, 1868 killing 30 people and causing widespread damage. "It's a great reminder the Hayward fault is ready to go," Knudsen said.
Knudsen said there was one aftershock recordered following Thursday morning's quake and there is a small probability it will be followed by a bigger earthquake. Historically, about 5% of earthquakes are followed by larger ones.
Randy Baldwin, a geophysicist with the USGS said the quake was eight miles deep which is fairly shallow. He said the quake was widely felt about 100 miles beyond the epicenter and that a magnitude 4.4 earthquake is a common size for the area.
The quick jolt woke many people up. The KTVU newsroom was flooded with callers who felt the shaking all the way north to Cotati and South to Gilroy. A few people reported items had fallen off shelves.
BART said there were delays on the first trains while they inspected their system as is routine after an earthquake. Officials said there were no reports or signs of damage and trains were back on schedule at around 5:45 a.m.
VTA also conducted routine checks of its tracks as part of its standard safety precautions. Early morning riders experienced minor delays.
Alert SF said there is no threat of a Tsunami and the California Office of Emergency Services said there were no reports of damage.