Briefs

Earthquake measuring 7.0 hits Northern California

December 5, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

Share this:

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA — A STRONG EARTHQUAKE MEASURING 7.0 on the Richter Scale hit Northern California on Thursday, Dec. 5, around 10:44 a.m. (1:44 p.m. EST), leading safety authorities to issue a tsunami warning, the Associated Press reports. The U.S. Geological Survey pinpointed the quake west of Ferndale, a small city in coastal Humboldt County. Residents as far south as San Francisco reported feeling a rolling motion for several seconds and then several aftershocks. Traffic in San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) was suspended in all directions through the underwater tunnel between San Francisco and Oakland. The U.S. Geological Survey issued a yellow alert, which predicts localized but minimal damage. As the climate crisis persists, earthquakes and other natural disasters become more common globally, especially impacting areas like California that are prone to such events.

While earthquakes in New York City are rare, they do happen due to the minor fault lines under Manhattan. There is also the Ramapo Fault, named for a town in New Jersey, and earthquakes from that area can sometimes be felt in the city. New York City experienced shallow quakes during 2024 and in 2023, and an Aug. 23, 2011, quake in New York City measured 5.8 and was the strongest to hit the city since World War II.

✰✰✰