A magnitude 3.8 earthquake shook the San Francisco Bay Area Thursday morning.
The quake was centered just north of the Oakland Zoo and widely felt across the Bay Area. Light shaking, as defined by the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale, was felt in Oakland and nearby San Leandro and Alameda, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Light shaking is generally noticeable indoors and strong enough to rattle dishes and windows. Weak shaking, which might feel like a truck has passed by, was felt farther away, including areas like San Francisco, San Mateo, Berkeley, San José, Santa Cruz and San Rafael.
The earthquake hit at 8:30 a.m. and was initially reported as magnitude 4.1, then 3.9, before being downgraded to 3.8. Anchors at Oakland’s KTVU-TV Channel 2 news station said they felt a jolt while on air.
“Whoa! We are having an earthquake. Our whole studio just shook. That was pretty big, I can tell you. The desk shook, the lights shook,” one anchor said, as an overhead light trembled slightly. “I felt a little bit dizzy.”
The region’s Bay Area Rapid Transit commuter rail system reduced train speeds after the quake to complete safety inspections, and told riders to expect delays of about 20 minutes.
The earthquake’s epicenter was close to the Hayward fault, one of the Bay Area’s most dangerous. The Bay Area has a 72% chance of experiencing a magnitude 6.7 quake or greater by 2045, according to USGS estimates published in 2015.
There’s a 14.3% chance that quake would happen on the Hayward fault; a 7.4% chance it would be on the Calaveras fault; and a 6.4% chance it would be on the San Andreas.
The Hayward fault’s most memorable earthquake in recorded history was an estimated magnitude 6.8 in 1868. That quake killed about 30 people and caused immense property damage, including the collapse of the Alameda County Courthouse’s second floor and heavy damage at the historic Mission San José adobe church in southern Fremont.
A USGS simulation said that a future magnitude 7 quake on the Hayward fault could result in at least 800 deaths and 18,000 injuries. More than 400 fires could ignite, burning the equivalent of 52,000 single-family homes, and a lack of water for firefighters caused by old pipes shattering underground could make matters worse.
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