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Lakewood Times

Lakewood Times

Lakewood Times

    3.4 Earthquake Hits East Bay

    3.4+Earthquake+Hits+East+Bay

    On Wednesday, January 16th, an earthquake with a magnitude of 3.7 hit the East Bay area in California. It was centered in the hills near the Oakland and Berkeley border, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Areas such as San Francisco, San Jose, and Piedmont were also affected.

    The earthquake registered early morning at 4:42 a.m and lasted close to 3.4 minutes. With a depth around 11.7 in most affected areas and varied throughout the region.

    There are no reports of injuries or damage and the quake dispersed into lower and lower magnitudes throughout surrounding areas.

    There were three other earthquakes this week, prior to the one on Wednesday, just off the North Coast near Petrolia. The first measured 4.1 on Sunday afternoon, and two more Tuesday with magnitudes of 4.0 and 3.7.

    In addition, Thursday marks the 25th anniversary of the 1994 Northridge earthquake in the San Fernando Valley. Around 60 people were killed and nearly 9,000 were injured in the 6.7 magnitude quake as reported by The Atlantic. 

    According to the United States Geological Survey: “Each year the southern California area has about 10,000 earthquakes. Most of them are so small that they are not felt. Only several hundred are greater than magnitude 3.0, and only about 15-20 are greater than magnitude 4.0.”

    This is a significant piece of data as it highlights that while having four earthquakes in one week may not be out of the ordinary, the considerably high magnitudes could be cause for concern.

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