Earthquake!!

[Mara]

We just had an earthquake shake this area of CA....centered in San Simeon, magnitude of 6.5!




We hardly felt it here at work, I just felt dizzy as I was writing something down and thought...woah I need to lay off the drinking before work. Haa

But over in Foster City, Greg said the windows were clattering, but my other friend in FC didn''t feel anything but dizzy.




Also my girlfriend who works for Cisco said their buildings were hugely rolling, but our building about a mile away didn''t even hardly move!




So odd.

 

[Mara]

Update: http://quake.wr.usgs.gov/recenteqs/Maps/121-36.htm




A strong earthquake occurred at 11:15:56 AM (PST) on Monday, December 22, 2003.
The magnitude 6.5 event occurred 11 km (7 miles) NE of San Simeon, CA.
The hypocentral depth is 8 km ( 5 miles).



STRONG AFTERSHOCKS (Magnitude 5 and larger)
At this time (immediately after the mainshock) the probability of a strong and possibly damaging aftershock IN THE NEXT 7 DAYS is greater than 90 PERCENT.

 

[fire&ice]

..Was at my drycleaners & they announced on CNN. But, they reported it was in LA. Was this north of LA & South of San Fran? I don't know how you'll do it. My little 4.5 & I'm packing up my pottery & headed somewhere that doesn't have a fault.

Any damage reported?

 

[hoorray]

It was pretty much in the middle between SF and LA on the coast. Right at Hearst Castle if you know where that is. I didn't feel it here in the desert. (But I've been out driving around -- that's the least likely place to feel one.)

 

[fire&ice]

----------------
On 12/22/2003 3:30:02 PM lop wrote:

(But I've been out driving around -- that's the least likely place to feel one.) ----------------

Here's F&I's new obsession - earthquakes. Why wouldn't you feel it in a car? Isn't that where the freeway comes apart? Or in SF colapsed?

 

[Mara]

Yeah I am shocked that we felt it over here...it was in Central CA. Especially the 'range' of who felt it.




Wonder if there was any damage at Hearst Castle...those windy little roads and busses...!!!

You wouldn't feel it in a car if you were moving....unless it was a very severe magnitude, 6.5 at the epicenter most likely means it was more around 4 or less near us. But if windows were shaking in Foster City..that sounds higher. Very odd.

 

[derekinla]

Didn't feel it here in LA

 

[Mara]

Strong Earthquake Hits Central California

By Arthur Spiegelman[/p]

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A strong earthquake measuring 6.5 struck the central California coast on Monday morning, swaying high-rise buildings hundreds of miles away from San Francisco to Los Angeles.

The quake, one of the strongest to strike the seismically active state in recent years, triggered scenes of worry and concern but no immediate reports of serious damage or injuries. In 1999, a 7.1 quake was registered in the southern California desert near Twenty Nine Palms.

The epicenter of Monday's quake was located near San Simeon, California, the home of Hearst Castle, one of the major tourist attractions in the state, the U.S. Geological Survey (news - web sites) said. Media reports said the castle was evacuated, but there were no immediate reports of damage.

The quake's depth was measured at five miles and it struck just before 11:16 a.m. PST (2:16 p.m. EST).

Within one hour of the initial quake 30 aftershocks of magnitude 3.0 or greater were recorded in the region, including one at 4.7, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.

"Any time there is an earthquake of this magnitude we expect to have aftershocks, some of which may be significant," said Tom Jordan, the director of the Southern California Earthquake Center.

Ben Banuchi, editor of newspaper King City Rustler, in King City, a central California agricultural city about 30 miles north of San Simeon told a San Francisco television station, "It seemed like being on a roller coaster ride over here. Just as you thought it was over, it kept going on and on and on. At first we thought it was a truck passing. It hit pretty hard over here."

In southern California, many office workers in high-buildings grabbed their desks as they felt the rolling motions of the quake.

Fire and police officials in Los Angeles said they had received no reports of damage or injuries. In Santa Barbara, about 100 miles away, between Los Angeles and the quake zone, buildings were evacuated but a sheriff's department spokesman said no major damage had been reported except for spotty power outages that affected traffic signals.

California Highway Patrol officer Ron Friberg in Templeton, located on Highway 101, east of the San Simeon area, said he had received no preliminary reports of injuries or of structural damage to highway overpasses or roads in the area.

But at least one motorist had called to report a rock slide on a nearby highway, Friberg said. The severity of the slide was not immediately known.

Friberg said there was "a lot of shaking" in offices in Templeton. "We lost a lot of books and things off our shelves. Some pictures on the walls were knocked down," he said about the highway patrol's office.

Joyce Hamley, a resident of Cambria, California, near the quake's epicenter said that the temblor had knocked over shelves and merchandise in her wine and merchandise store.

"This is the most severe quake we've ever felt and I've been here 25 years," said Carrie Bassford, who works at the San Luis Obispo Fire Department. "This is a fairly new building and it's supposed to be earthquake-proof and I could see the building just swaying back and forth. I'm in the lobby. We just never felt anything like it here ever. Our hearts are still beating pretty hard right now. This is the closest we've ever come to a big one."

 

[stumpy]

Wasn't it centered in a third floor bedroom at "Neverland"?

 

[AGBF]

I just read "The New York Times"' account. I realize I have to call a friend. She lives on the coast at around the latitude of Silicon Valley. I hadn't realized this was on the coast.

December 22, 2003
Quake Shakes California From Los Angeles to San Francisco
By KIRK SEMPLE

A powerful earthquake struck the sparsely populated coastal region of central California today, collapsing a two-story building in the town of Paso Robles and killing at least two people, officials said.

The earthquake also knocked out power to some areas in the region and sent tremors that were felt as far north as San Francisco and as far south as Los Angeles.

Television images from Paso Robles, located in a region of wineries and ranches, showed rescue crews digging through rubble at the site of the collapsed building.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's office confirmed two deaths in the building collapse, according to Dale Chessey, a spokesman for the Governor's Office of Emergency Services. Some news services reported that three people had been killed.

Reports from elsewhere in the region initially indicated only minor structural damage from the earthquake, which occurred at about 11:15 Pacific time. In Paso Robles, where the only known fatalities occurred, a 19th-century clock tower building toppled into the street.

``My roof basically jumped onto the street and landed on cars with people in them,'' Nick Sherwin, who operated a jewelry store in the collapsed building, told The Associated Press. The cars, he added, ``are crushed like little toys, nothing left.''

Sgt. Pete Hodgkin of the San Luis Obispo County sheriff's office told The A.P. that several people had been hurt at a winery when barrels fell over.

Mr. Chessey, of the Governor's Office of Emergency Services in Sacramento, said in a telephone interview that more than 10,000 residents throughout central California the San Luis Obispo area were without power this afternoon. But except for one highway, which sustained impassable cracks from the earthquake, the region's transportation systems and services were unaffected, Mr. Chessey said.

State and local officials said that early reports indicated that aside from the Paso Robles building collapse, the earthquake appeared to have caused minimal structural damage and no other serious casualties.

Rob Bryn, spokesman for the San Luis Obispo Police Department, 35 miles south of Paso Robles, said in a telephone interview that buildings in San Luis Obispo had sustained ``normal, light earthquake damage'' that included pictures falling from walls and power interruptions.

The United States Geological Survey reported that the earthquake measured 6.5 magnitude, and said it was centered north of the coastal town of Cambria, near Paso Robles and about 185 miles northwest of Los Angeles.

Officials said that an earthquake of that magnitude has the potential to do billions of dollars of damage in an urban area, but Ross Stein, a geophysicist and a spokesman for the Geological Survey, said that the effects of this earthquake would probably be limited because it was centered in ``a relatively remote place.''.

The region has already felt more than 30 aftershocks, officials said, and more are expected in the coming weeks, including one topping a magnitude of 5.0.

The earthquake's epicenter was several miles from Hearst Castle, the estate built by William Randolph Hearst. The site, now a tourist attraction, was evacuated as a precaution, but officials reported no damage except for several fallen objects.

Mr. Stein of the Geological Survey urged residents and visitors to the region to carrying an emergency kit including first-aid kit, water, food, tennis shoes and work gloves - should there be a need to dig through or climb across rubble.

Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company | Home | Privacy Policy | Search | Corrections | Help |

 

[hoorray]

AGBF, I hope you got a hold of your friend, and all is ok. The coast across from Silicon Valley is north of the earthquake center by probably 150 miles, so odds are that that area was not hit too hard.

F&I, I don't know the technical reason why you don't feel tham as much in cars. I assume it is because you are already moving and jostling around somewhat so extra jostling is harder to feel. (That is of course, unless you are on a structure that collapses or sways significantly

.)

 

[AGBF]

----------------
On 12/22/2003 9:26:27 PM lop wrote:

AGBF, I hope you got a hold of your friend, and all is ok. The coast across from Silicon Valley is north of the earthquake center by probably 150 miles, so odds are that that area was not hit too hard.
----------------

You were absolutely right! I just got off the phone with her. She, also, said she was 150 miles from the epicenter. (She is in Rio del Mar.) She didn't feel it because she was unloading groceries from the car, but her husband-who was sitting down inside-did feel it. She said it must have been one of the "rolling" quakes as opposed to the ones that jolt. I, not being an aficionado of earthquakes, don't know how the two differ. She is, however, fine. Thanks for posting in response to my concern.

 

[mike04456]

I didn't feel a thing, but we are a long way south of there. I've been through earthquakes that big before--not fun.

 

[Mara]

It was definitely a rolling quake over where we were and not a jolting...hence why I didn't feel a darn thing but dizzy .

Guess the fault ran from LA to Golden Gate hence why some people felt it so strongly in Foster City and the surrounding areas but it epicentered in Central. Very interesting!

"This fault extends to the south where ... essentially one long fault that kisses the coastline all the way from where California takes its northward bend near Santa Barbara up to the Golden Gate."

 

[caratgirl]

Well, I'm just happy that I am spending three weeks with my folks in Florida! I can't stand the feel of earthquakes, but I guess I wouldn't have felt it in the Ventura County area anyway. Happy Holidays, everyone!

 

[tessa]

This was my earthquake.
(Practically my own personal earthquake, especially the many aftershocks, most of which are centered within a mile or two of my house.... or under it!)

This was my home office after the quake.
I had just given my kids picture taking cell phones for Xmas so we got a couple of pics.

One of the women who died was a friend of mine; not close, but still a friend.

The historic building which collapsed actually contained a jewelry store.
The owner has since said that everything has been accounted for.

We have had continuing aftershocks, long after the usual 3 weeks or so that aftershocks usually persist. We have had 2 more pretty big ones (Magnitude 3 is considered where "large" starts) just in the last 24 hours.
And easily a dozen a day of smaller but very local ones which rattle my house and threaten to rupture more of my aquaria.
The Dec 22 quake spilled close to 500 gallons of my fishtanks onto my hardwood floor (and everything else which was knocked to the floor as well).

Everything in my kitchen closets and refrigerator fell on the floor too and we had no water or electricity for over 3 days. Lots of paper towels were used for cleanup!! Me and the Brawny Paper Towel guy!

It has been 7 weeks and my father's house (and many others) have been visited by FEMA yet the continuing quakes make us all too nervous to put the books back on the highesst shelves and hang the pics back on the walls.
Even the light fixtures in the ceilings were knocked right onto the floor.

I am still picking up shards- lost most of my kitchen stuff, dishes, glassware etc.

And several of my best jewelry pieces are still missing; my hopes of finding them have dwindled considerably, the more I clean up stuff.

Oh, well- this has been a really life changing event for me.
I just wish the shaking would stop so we can all relax again sometime soon.

 

[tessa]

Kitchen looked bad but smelled worse.

The bathrooms looked like this too but soapy!

 

[tessa]

Luckily, my son was not sleeping late that day.

Also, I took my good jewelry and put it into little individual pouches all in one larger pouch and now I sleep with it under my pillow. (Neurotic, I know...)
I lost things down the sink drains and toilet bowl when my potted plants fell and knocked over my jewelry boxes. Etc etc.

Okay, enough.