Strong Shake Felt in Northern California

An Earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.6 has shaken an area northeast of San Jose. The quake occurred at 8:04 PM local time on 10/30/07.

The quake was centered in a remote section of the Calaveras Valley about three miles southeast of the Calaveras Reservoir. This location is about 7 miles east of Milpitas, 9 miles northeast of San Jose, 14 miles southeast of Freemont.

At this time there has been no reports of injuries or damage. This may change as information regarding the quake is still coming in.

CLICK HERE for the latest information and discussion regarding this quake.

4.3 quake felt near Watsonville

UPDATED 7/2/07

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.3 struck the Watsonville area monday afternoon. The quake struck at 12:58 PM and was felt throughout the region and up into the San Francisco bay area.

There have been no injuries and damage has been limited to a few items falling off store shelves.

Two smaller quakes occured in this area last week. CLICK HERE to read our report on those quakes.

If you felt this earthquake and would like to share your story (or read other accounts), please check our message board.

Don't forget to check out our 2007 quake map to see other Northern California quakes in 2007. Our list of previous years quakes can be found on the right side of our web site.

Small Quakes Rattle Watsonville

UPDATED: 7/2/07

A new 4.3 quake has been reported in this area. CLICK HERE for our special report.

Residents in Watsonville were shaken by a series of small quakes late this afternoon. The three quakes, measuring 3.0, 3.2 and 3.0, all occurred within 15 minutes of each other.

The earthquakes were felt within the Watsonville and surrounding communities. The shaking has been described as a gentle rumbling ending in a sharp jolt.

If you felt this earthquake and would like to share your story (or read other accounts), please check our message board.

Be sure to check out our 2007 quake map to see other Northern California quakes in 2007. Our list of previous years quakes can be found on the right side of our web site.

Remembering the 1984 Morgan Hill Earthquake

On April 24, 1984 at 1:15 p.m. PST, a 6.2 magnitude earthquake occurred on the Calaveras fault to the east of San Jose, California. This earthquake was felt over an area of approximately 120,000 km2 in California and western Nevada. The area of moderate damage ($8 million) extended southward from the epicenter rather than centering on the epicenter. This pattern indicates that the Morgan Hill earthquake may have been a double event with the second event being located about 17 km southeast of the main shock.

In Santa Clara County, where most of the damage occurred, more than 550 structures incurred minor damage. Major structural damage was mainly confined to a very small area on two streets of the Jackson Oaks subdivision located east of Morgan Hill (population 19,000). Five houses were condemned; two of these had fallen off their concrete foundations and suffered partial collapse. Several masonry buildings on Main Street in Morgan Hill were damaged and later condemned. Well-engineered industrial buildings and residential structures sustained only minor damage, but many mobile homes fell off their supports causing considerable damage to the furnishings inside. There were many reports of fires resulting from the quake. Minor damage also occurred at San Martin and Coyote. Twenty-seven people were injured.

Small Quake Hits off the Coast of Northern California

Associated Press - Petrolia, CA (April 6, 2007)

A small quake struck off the coast of Humboldt County on Thursday afternoon (4/5/07), but there were no immediate reports of injuries or damages.

The magnitude-4.1 earthquake struck at 3:54 p.m. and was centered about 40 miles southwest of Eureka and 206 miles northwest of Sacramento, according to the U.S. Geological Survey

There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries, according to a spokeswoman for the Humboldt County Sheriff's Department.

4.7 Quake Rattles South Bay Area

SAN MARTIN, June 15, 2006 - A magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck the south San Francisco Bay area early Thursday, but there were no reports of injuries or damage, authorities said.

The quake struck at 5:24 a.m. PDT about 6 miles east of San Martin, a town of 4,200 people in a rural part of southern Santa Clara County, and was followed by three smaller quakes, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The quake could be felt in San Francisco, about 70 miles north of the epicenter.

No one was hurt and there were no reports of damage, according to the Santa Clara County sheriff's department and police in Gilroy, about 8 miles from where the quake struck.

Small earthquake shakes rural area outside Morgan Hill

associated press

MORGAN HILL – An earthquake with a preliminary-magnitude of 3.7 struck a rural area south of the San Francisco Bay area on Wednesday morning, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The quake, which struck just before 7:30 a.m., was centered in an area 20 miles northeast of Morgan Hill and 23 miles east of San Jose in Santa Clara County, the USGS. said.

Neither the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department nor the Morgan Hill Police Department received any immediate reports of injuries or damage.

Minor Quake Shakes up Eastern Santa Clara County

Written for the web by Bob Montgomery, Internet News Producer

Residents of eastern Santa Clara County got an early wakeup call this morning when an earthquake rumbled through the region.

The temblor, which struck at 2:42 a.m., had a magnitude of 3.6. It was centered 21 miles east of San Jose, near the border between Santa Clara and Stanislaus counties. The quake occurred at a depth of 3.2 miles.

The shaker was strong enough to wake up some residents of the area, but did not cause any significant damage or injuries. It was felt in a number of South Bay communities, including Morgan Hill, Alum Rock and parts of San Jose.

Small Quake Jolts Santa Cruz County

BEN LOMOND — Residents across Santa Cruz County were shaken awake this morning by a small earthquake that hit about 6:05 a.m.

No injuries or damages were reported. The 3.1 magnitude temblor struck about 2 miles from Ben Lomond, and originated 6.3 miles beneath the earth’s surface, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

“It woke people up, and we got about 8 or 9 calls asking about damage,” Sheriff’s Lt. Steve Hartness said, adding that it felt like a truck had hit his house. “There was nothing to report.”

Many people, such as Karen Randall of Ben Lomond, weren’t sure the quick jolt was actually an earthquake.

“We all kind of wondered what it was,” said Randall, who had already arrived to work at Ben Lomond Market on Highway 9 when the quake struck. “I just heard a noise. It was kind of weird.”

Small Quake Rattles Santa Cruz Area

SEPTEMBER 18, 2005

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 3.1 rattled a section of California south of San Francisco. The quake was located between Santa Cruz and Menlo Park near the small community of Boulder Creek. The quake struck just after midnight.

Although the quake was small it was felt by many people. Within two hours over one thousand people have reported feeling the quake. Reports have come in from as far north as San Francisco and as far south as Santa Cruz.

A quake of this size is not expected to cause major damage or injuries.

Strongest shaking was felt around the Boulder Creek area. One local resident was quoted as saying "set things to swinging and rattled with windows/glasses."

The deadly 7.0 Loma Prieta earthquake struck this region during the evening of October 17, 1989. That quake was centered 9 miles northeast of Santa Cruz, or 18 miles southeast of this recent quake.

The map below (click for full size) shows where this quake and it's first five small aftershocks occurred in relation to boulder Creek.