According to the US Geological Survey, a preliminary 4.1 magnitude earthquake struck near Bay Point at about 5 a.m. on Thursday. The earthquake struck northwest of Bay Point and Pittsburg. near Suisun Bay and Discovery Bay. The location is around 30 miles northeast of San Francisco’s downtown.
What are the exact reports of damages?
There have been no injuries recorded thus yet. According to preliminary seismic data, the earthquake should not have caused any serious damage, however many inhabitants in the epicentre area are likely to have felt a little tremor.
More than 4,400 reports were submitted to the US Geological Survey’s community reporting portal in just a few hours. The reports came in from all around the Bay Area and the Central Valley to the east. In most cases, the reports stated that the intensity was light or moderate.
According to reports on the USGS website, the earthquake was felt all the way from Sacramento to Santa Cruz. As technicians inspected tracks after the quake, Bay Area Rapid Transit announced delays of up to 20 minutes.
According to the US Geological Survey’s Paul Laustsen, the quake occurred between two faults: Concord and Pittsburg-Kirby Hills.
Whereas its big sisters, the San Andreas and Hayward fissures, get all the attention, these two faults can also cause significant damage. Pittsburg is located on the Pittsburg-Kirby Hills fault, which runs north through town. The Concord Fault runs from the Carquinez Strait to the foothills of Mount Diablo and is 11 miles long. They run beneath a number of houses as well as a vital fuel-dispensing plant.
A study conducted by the Association of Bay Area Governments, a significant earthquake in this area might leave the entire northern half of the state without easy access to fuel, hampering transportation as well as the transfer of electricity and water.
How did the People of San Francisco React?
Many residents in the San Francisco Bay Area turned to Twitter to report feeling the earthquakes in town. A citizen of San Francisco tweeted “ No alarm bells were needed as a massive 4.1 magnitude earthquake wakes up the San Francisco Bay Area early morning”
The United States Geological Survey reported the quake struck at 5:07 a.m. at a depth of around 12 miles. The epicentre was 6.2 miles northwest of Pittsburg, 7.9 miles north of Concord, and 21.6 miles northeast of Berkeley, with the quake striking about northwest of Bay Point. According to the USGS shake map, tremors were felt throughout the Bay Area and Sacramento region. Till 6 a.m., over 3,600 people have reported feeling it to the USGS.
Even the trains on the Bay Area Rapid Transit system were also moving at a reduced pace as the lines were being inspected for damage.
Mild Tremors in the Nearby Regions
Minor vibrations were felt near Bay Point, which is 4 miles from the epicentre. Apart from that, significant earthquakes were detected in Fairfield (12 miles), Concord (8 miles), Antioch (11 miles), New York of the Pacific (6 miles), Walnut Creek (13 miles), Vallejo (15 miles), and Martinez (9 miles).
San Francisco, 32 miles from the epicentre, and Sacramento, 44 miles away, are two more towns or localities around the epicentre where the quake may have been felt as extremely minor vibrations in the region.