Governor Declares State of Emergency After Magnitude 6.0 Earthquake Strikes San Francisco Bay Area
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Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images(NAPA, Calif.) — A 6.0 magnitude earthquake hit the the Bay Area just north of San Francisco at about 3:20 a.m. Sunday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Seismologist Jessica Turner with the USGS says the quake, felt across large areas of California, occurred about 51 miles southwest of Sacramento.
Pacific Gas and Electric Company reported over 15,000 outages most of which are in the area of Napa, Santa Rosa and Sonoma.
“I woke up in the middle of the night to the most violent shake I ever felt. I thought it was the end of the world really,” said Alex Simenstad who lives in downtown Napa close to the epicenter.
According to the USGS, at least 22 aftershocks have been reported, with the strongest registering at 3.6 on the Richter scale.
The USGS says the quake is the largest to strike the area since 1989 magnitude Loma Prieta quake.
“I was alone in the house so I didn’t know what to do, and the first thing when it stopped – I ran under the table and tried to get cover because it’s the first thing they say to do for an earthquake is get under the table,” Diana Martini, who lives in Valejo, told ABC News.
Martini said her television crashed to the ground, along with some of her dishes.
“I’m on the first floor, so that was the scariest thing. I thought the building was going to come down,” she said.
Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa reported having treated approximately 120 patients who were injured in the earthquake, according to Napa City Fire’s Darren Drake. Three of those patients, including one child, are in critical condition.
The city of Napa said that there were an estimated 50 gas main breaks and 30 water main leaks.
Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency late Saturday morning, activating the state’s emergency personnel, equipment and facilities.
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