Power outages reported as 6.0 quake hits N. California
Edited time: August 24, 2014 12:09
Power outages have been reported in North Bay area of San Francisco and around the city of Napa, after California was shaken by a 6.0 magnitude earthquake. Eyewitnesses say windows were shattered in the affected area.
At least 15,000 customers were left without power across Northern California, the utility provider Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s map showed following the massive quake.
The 6.0 quake struck at 3:20 am (10:20 GMT), the US Geological Survey said. Its epicenter was 6 kilometers from American Canyon and 9 kilometers from the city of Napa, at a depth of 10.8 kilometers from the surface.
Residents of the cities of San Francisco, some 40 miles away, and Davis, just over 70 miles away, quickly took to Twitter reporting feeling the quake.
The shaking set off car alarms and had local residents running out of their houses in the middle of the night, AP reports.
The moment the quake struck was captured by CCTV at one of the households in the area - the video is now circulating online.
The USGS initially measured the tremor as “moderate,” but then it was upgraded to "violent." The Survey's ShakeMap predicts heavy damage from the quake. Next week could see aftershocks of up to 5.0 magnitude, the agency warned.
No tsunami warning has been issued. There were no immediate reports of injuries.
The quake has been described as the most powerful in the area since the deadly 1989 Loma Prieta 6.9 magnitude earthquake, in which 63 people were killed and more than 3,000 injured.