SF Earthquake Today... the Berkeley PD is Mightily Relieved

';Most areas reported weak to light shaking and those closest epicenter reported moderate shaking,'; she said. ';I heard there were some windows breaking at a grocery store in Berkeley and a donut shop, but it was all pretty minor. It didn%26#39;t interrupt donut production.';

(SF Chronicle 7/20/07: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/07/20/BAquake.DTL%26amp;amp;feed=rss.bayarea)

Anybody feel it? Since I%26#39;m arriving on Wednesday, I%26#39;ve been thinking about what if one happens during our trip, but it seems you got it all out of your system before our arrival (right?)

SF Earthquake Today... the Berkeley PD is Mightily Relieved

My husband was just ';nice'; enough to forward me the article. As if I don%26#39;t have enough pretravel jitters already, this really shook me up (sorry, couldn%26#39;t resist). I must say the thought of an earthquake had already been lurking in my mind.

It seems everyone was safe with this one. It must be pretty scary though even if it%26#39;s considered a minor earthquake.

SF Earthquake Today... the Berkeley PD is Mightily Relieved

Didn%26#39;t feel it. They happen all the time and most of the time you don%26#39;t know until you read about it, so don%26#39;t worry folks.

Don%26#39;t beleive the hype, most people didn%26#39;t even feel it, including me.

Nope. It%26#39;s gotta be pretty strong before I notice.

If one happens when you%26#39;re on your trip, head for the nearest door way and stand under that. That%26#39;s just SOP.

';If one happens when you%26#39;re on your trip, head for the nearest door way and stand under that.';

Bings, I%26#39;m heading for the nearest bar and praying all the bottles didn%26#39;t break! I%26#39;ll never forgot that searing image taking by a security camera inside a bar during a recent California earthquake where all the liquor came tumbling down... oh, the horror!

I live about a mile from the epicenter and was def. rudely awakened. No damage inthe house, though. But we were just saying what a shameful waste that all the wine in our favorite AG Ferrari store is all over the floor!

Visitors, please don%26#39;t worry. You will be fine. The chances that you%26#39;ll actually feel one are almost nil, and then if you do, that something bad will happen even less so. However, wait until AFTER the shaking to head to the nearest bar...just in case!

Oh, and BTW, it was an Oakland earthquake, not an SF one. Let%26#39;s give credit where it%26#39;s due!!

This morning%26#39;s earthquake definitely jolted me awake. Alas, this doesn%26#39;t ';get it out of our system;'; earthquakes often arrive close together. Unlike most other acts of God, we don%26#39;t get any warning. One moment, I%26#39;m sleeping soundly, the next, it%26#39;s 4:40 am and I%26#39;m wide awake and hoping nothing falls off my shelves.

There%26#39;s not much you can do during a quake; they last about 15 seconds. If you have time, get your body, especially your head, under a solid object, like a table or desk. Don%26#39;t run outside. Quakes happen here all the time and most are so small they aren%26#39;t felt. If you%26#39;re here for a significant quake, by the time you really start freaking out, it%26#39;ll already be over. And you%26#39;ll have great vacation quake stories to tell when you get home!

Here%26#39;s more info on what to do in the event of a quake:http://www.fema.gov/hazard/earthquake/eq_during.shtm

Yeah, it woke me up, but natural phenomena have a way of doing that. A few years ago, I was in bed (in S.F.) and woke up for no obvious reason, wondering, ';What was that?'; It was more like a vibration than real motion, the kind that you might mistake for a gust of wind. I looked at the clock and went back to sleep. Later that day, I heard that a moderate quake had been recorded near Mono Lake at the time I was awakened. Yeah, I may be in too close touch with nature; I even get barometric headaches. :)

There was no mistaking today%26#39;s. It felt like a small shudder, a pause, then a definite jolt like a giant hand had shoved on the side of the house. I live in the middle of S.F. on bedrock.

As I usually do when I feel a quake, I turned on KCBS, 740 AM. That is the place to go for quick quake updates. With today%26#39;s technology and communication, they usually have the magnitude within 5 minutes, and the epicenter soon after.

After hearing that no apparent injuries were reported, I went back to the Land of Nod.

As for getting it out of our system, that may be false security. We keep hoping that moderate quakes ';relieve stress'; on the faults, but many scientists say that isn%26#39;t the case. It%26#39;s kinda like being relieved that there was already a hurricane this month so Mother Nature is tired and we%26#39;ll go three years until the next one. Not to worry, though; you%26#39;re going to get run over by a Muni bus a dozen times before you get hurt in an earthquake.

Yep, I felt the earthquake as well. The bed gently shook for about 4 seconds or so, which was just enough to wake me up. I stayed awake for a few minutes to make sure that there wouldn%26#39;t be another jolt immediately after and then went right back to sleep. I spoke with a few other folks and most of them didn%26#39;t even feel the quake.