EL CERRITO – An early morning earthquake struck El Cerrito on Saturday morning, rudely waking up residents across the Bay Area and causing minor damage near the epicenter.
The 3.6 magnitude quake occurred at 3:39 a.m. and was centered in the Hillside Natural Area, close to the Hayward Fault, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
It was the largest quake centered in Contra Costa County since November 2021, and it could also be felt by thousands of people outside of the county, in cities such as Fremont, San Francisco, and Redwood City. One Berkeley resident said the jolt caused items to fall out of her kitchen cabinets.
“We were dead asleep when the building started shaking and the windows started rattling,” said Carrie Kahn. “It didn’t seem like it was going to stop. I was so relieved when I realized the power and internet were still working. Then, I saw the mess in the kitchen in the morning; my spice jars fell out of the cabinet and were all broken.”
The quake was also a reminder to be prepared for a larger event. The USGS in a 2015 study estimated a 14.3 percent likelihood of a magnitude 6.7 or greater earthquake on the Hayward Fault, which runs roughly 74 miles along the western base of the densely populated East Bay Hills, in the next 30 years.
The El Cerrito and Richmond Police departments said that no major damage had been reported as of Saturday morning. BART tracks were inspected for damage and due to icy conditions early on, causing about a 20-minute delay.
Paul Caruso, a geophysicist from the National Earthquake Information Center, which is part of the USGS, said that by 9:30 a.m., more than 7,873 people had reported feeling the temblor.
“People will feel it differently depending what side of the fault they’re on because the ground moves differently,” he said. “There’s a lot of other variables as well, such as what soil you sit on and what type of building you’re in. But we usually don’t see significant damage and casualties until magnitudes get up to around 5.5.”
Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia, whose district includes El Cerrito, said he didn’t get an alert on his phone, but the temblor definitely woke him up.
“It felt a lot stronger than 3.6 to me. I live a few miles from the epicenter on the bay shoreline and my house is in an area that was filled about 60 years ago, which really shows the type of soil you live on affects how strongly you feel the shaking,” Gioia said. “It felt stronger for me than for people who live even closer to the epicenter that live on more stable rock.”
Gioia said that an e-newsletter will be sent out to residents in the county with tips on how to prepare for future quakes. “I think this is a reminder that we live in earthquake country and a big one can happen at any time,” Gioia said.
Keith Knudsen, a geologist and the Deputy Director of the Earthquake Science Center at the USGS, who lives in Albany, said an earthquake of this size is normal for the fault.
“The fault moves in a way that we call creep, which means that the two sides slide past each other between big earthquakes,” he said. “Every once in a while, as part of that creep, there’s a big stuck patch and those patches can rupture, resulting in magnitude 3 earthquakes, and they usually occur in the same place.”
In order to prepare for a bigger quake, Knudsen said that residents should read the Seven Steps to Earthquake Safety on the California Earthquake Authority’s website, and make a plan for how to communicate with family members following an earthquake.
“Have an emergency kit. I have a garbage can in my backyard filled with water and other things we might need for a few days. It’s also important to think about mitigation. Investigate the structures you and your family spend time in. Make sure those buildings will protect you.”Source: www.mercurynews.com