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Did You Feel It? Five Quakes Reported in Berkeley

Share your experiences in the comments below. What did it feel like to you?

A 3.8 quake reportedly hit Berkeley at 8:16 p.m. Thursday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Thursday afternoon, a 4.0-magnitude earthquake was reported southeast of College Avenue in the university's Clark Kerr campus.

Thursday evening's quake took place northwest of that location, near Telegraph Avenue and Derby Street, with a quake depth of six miles.

The first earthquake hit at 2:41 p.m., and was initially reported by the U.S. Geological Survey as 4.2. After a seismologist's review, it was downgraded to 3.9, then upgraded to 4.0.

The first quake's depth was reported at 5.1 miles, at College and Ashby avenues.

A tiny aftershock happened at 3:02 p.m., followed by a third quake, magnitude 1.8, at 3:09 p.m. 

A fourth quake, which registered at 2.2, reportedly hit at 4:50 p.m. at Prince Street and College.

See a map of all five quakes here.

According to commenters on the Albany Patch Facebook page, students at Marin School took cover under their desks during the first quake. 

Others said it rattled their windows and scared pets.

As noted on the Albany High Cougar, "the earthquake occurred on the same day as the Great California Shakeout." Across the state, 8.6 million people participated in a practice earthquake drill at 10:20 a.m., "including students at Albany High."

Comment here if you felt the earthquake. You can always check for California quakes on the USGS site. Report quakes to the USGS here.

OTHER NOTABLE BAY AREA QUAKES OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS

Amber Whitson October 21, 2011 at 12:18 am
Feeling one *RIGHT NOW*!!!!
Jon Meyers October 21, 2011 at 12:19 am
Yeah, here's another one.
Emilie Raguso October 21, 2011 at 12:20 am
Another one!! :( At least I'm with friends right now.
Jon Meyers October 21, 2011 at 12:21 am
USGS says 4.2.
Betty Buginas October 21, 2011 at 12:31 am
I felt the 8:16 pm one in northern El Cerrito, stronger than I've felt in a long time.
Letitia Berlin October 21, 2011 at 12:36 am
that was a strong one! (8:16)
Emilie Raguso October 21, 2011 at 12:37 am
Downgraded to 3.9.... we all gotta be careful with the initial reports. Still... two at this magnitude in one day.... That's scary!!
Emilie Raguso October 21, 2011 at 12:37 am
Did this one feel stronger than the other one to you? The earlier one seemed longer and stronger from my place in Oakland -- but I'm curious about your experience.
Betty Buginas October 21, 2011 at 12:41 am
I was in Kensington around 3 pm and didn't feel anything then.
Catherine Stern October 21, 2011 at 12:42 am
I'm out in the Richmond Marina Bay and I really felt it. Scary!
Felix Yoon October 21, 2011 at 12:52 am
Updated to 3.8 at 8:46 PM local time.
John October 21, 2011 at 01:39 am
The BIG one is coming? We are so over due. I wonder what building is going to have the most damage in Albany if we have a big one.
Holly McCroskey October 21, 2011 at 04:17 am
Two or more quakes in the 3-4 range in one day is not scary to me. On the contrary, it's reassuring. Because the little ones release some of the stresses at the fault line and we're that much LESS likely to have a big quake soon!
(And if that's not actually how it works, I probably don't want to know. :))
Emilie Raguso October 21, 2011 at 04:27 am
We're hoping to check in with Robert Uhrhammer, Albany's own earthquake expert, Friday. If you missed our profile of him, see it here: http://patch.com/A-YL8
Copper Hat October 21, 2011 at 04:36 am
I like the quote usually (& incorrectly, I gather) attributed to Bohr: Prediction is very difficult, especially about the future.
Regarding your little ones hypothesis & earthquakes, this article http://www.nature.com/news/2010/100622/full/465992a.html combines prediction, earthquakes & Italian courts in one slightly disturbing article.
Karen Larson October 21, 2011 at 10:32 am
Many of us were at the Albany High Fall Concert last night for the second quake. The Jazz Band was on stage and they rocked the house! (Literally . . . )
L.S. October 21, 2011 at 12:10 pm
I was at the Julia Morgan Theatre watching YMTC's production of "Merrily We Roll Along". Misha Riley, a 17 year old singer-actor was in the middle of a solo number in the first act and the theatre began to shake...for some time...and everyone in the audience sort of sat in anxious anticipation...wondering whether to leave the theatre...the conductor Dave Moshchler was poised in front of the orchestra...and, after the second series of shaking, Misha, without breaking character, jumped right back into the song. At the end of the number there were huge cheers and extended applause. All of the actors rose to the occasion...it was great LIVE theatre!!
lubov mazur October 21, 2011 at 01:03 pm
Outside on terra not so firma for the first one. I thought it was a truck because there was no space between the P wave and the S wave, but the truck didn't rumble on up Marin Ave. The crows sure didn't like it. For the one after 8PM I was in the house and it felt much rumblier, but that was the house.
Jon Meyers October 21, 2011 at 01:36 pm
The cats freaked out, but not my spouse who was raised in California.
Moriah VanVleet October 21, 2011 at 01:55 pm
The later one felt like it lasted longer to me (from home in Albany), but the earlier one felt stronger and shorter (from UCB). The funny thing is, we had our annual earthquake drill earlier in the morning yesterday on campus!
Karina Tindol October 21, 2011 at 04:52 pm
Very timely jolts as they occurred on the same day as the Great CA Shakeout. Did it prompt you to mitigate any hazards around your house? Need to know how to prioritize after an earthquake? Sign up for Albany's Spring CERT course and learn how to fight small fires, do disaster medicine & conduct light search & rescue. Contact me for more info, ktindol@albanyca.org
Peggy McQuaid October 22, 2011 at 12:16 am
This is the perfect weekend to update or organize those emergency supplies. I know that is what I will be doing on Sunday. Who else is going to do at least one thing to make themselves and their families more prepared for a disaster? Check in on Patch to let others know what you did in preparation for the really "big one" .
Margaret Tong October 22, 2011 at 01:17 am
I am going home!
ginger mcc October 23, 2011 at 01:11 am
I definitely felt the quakes that occurred at 2:40 and 8:16! The 2:40 quake lasted a while (or so it seemed) - I had time to feel the rumble, feel it grow stronger, move to a doorway, while wondering how big it was going to get, and grip the doorway - at which point I thought, "what good is this going to do me?!" (I live on the third floor of an older - 1940's - apartment building.) It really was pretty unnerving. Felt a couple good jolts from the 8:16 quake, too. My cats did NOT dig that one at all!
Margaret Tong October 23, 2011 at 01:14 am
There will another house for sale in Albany soon.
I'm going home
Peggy McQuaid October 23, 2011 at 09:03 pm
I spent a couple of hours updating my disaster supplies this afternoon. The question - what to do with expired medicine. Luckily the Albany Police Department is taking back unwanted prescription drugs on October 29 at the Albany Senior Center. http://albanyca.org/index.aspx?page=18&recordid=1159&returnURL=%2findex.aspx
Mary Rees October 23, 2011 at 11:16 pm
I remember reading, a few years after I moved to California in the mid-1980s, about people who predicted major earthquakes based on the number of "missing pets" ads in the newspapers. It seemed that in the weeks before a major quake struck, more domestic animals -- cats, especially -- went AWOL, and there was a corresponding spike in the number of ads. The explanation (I think) had to do with a change in magnetism that a cat's brain could detect. I don't know whether anyone has further tested that method of prediction -- or whether any local newspapers or Patch sites still post missing pet ads....
Sarajane Forbes October 23, 2011 at 11:41 pm
LOL, that Isn't always a safe bet. I left Albany, and then experienced a nearly 6.0 here in DC where earthquakes are very ,very rare. You just never know....;)
Emilie Raguso October 24, 2011 at 05:07 am
I have a blog about the prescription take-back, from Karina, to post this week. I'm planning to restock at the Albany Target -- pronto! Does anyone have advice about this... can we order kits online? Or is it better (or the only option) to build a kit one's self?
(Also, Sarajane!!! We miss you!!!)
Ildikó February 4, 2012 at 02:32 pm
óhhh

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Hi there - This doesn't seem like an appropriate announcement for Albany or Berkeley Patch. 1) theRead More category is Announcements/Around Town and these events are all in Marin 2) Patch's "Terms of Use" say "You may use this Service solely for personal and non-commercial purposes. That is to say: You can’t use the Service to make a living unless you enter into a separate agreement with us that says you can." This is clearly solely a commercial venture, not a neighbor of ours or local organization providing a community service and charging for the service. 3) I went to the Novato website and saw this listing: "Ettiquette (sic) Series for Kids - 17737 Ages: 7 Years to 11 Years - Residents $150.00 - Non-residents $163.00" 4) These items push our items of local interest down and out of sight. Especially now that there is no box indicating the stories with the most recent comments, as there used to be on the Patch front page, out of sight does mean out of mind. Charles, what are your thoughts here? Thanks.
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Hi Amy, Thank you for letting me know and I understand! Angie
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