Update: Series of earthquakes on Stanislaus County’s West Side. How to get shake alerts
Several earthquakes of moderate size were recorded in western Stanislaus County on Monday afternoon through early Tuesday, according to the county Office of Emergency Services and the U.S. Geological Survey.
All were in the area of Westley and Diablo Grande.
There have been no reports of damage, Patterson Police Services Chief Joshua Clayton told The Bee, and “there doesn’t seem to be any indication of serious threat” from possible additional quakes.
The first of Monday’s quakes was magnitude 4.0 at 5:15 p.m, 14 kilometers south-southwest of Westley, at a depth of 0.1 km, according to the USGS.
Others were:
▪ A 3.6 quake at 8:44 p.m., 15 km southwest of Westley. Depth imprecise.
▪ A 4.5 at 9:13 p.m., also 15 km southwest of Westley. Depth 3.5 km
▪ A 3.2 at 9:40 p.m., 16 km west-southwest of Patterson. Depth 1.4 km
▪ A 3.2 at 10:25 p.m., 17 km west-southwest of Patterson, Depth 1.9 km
▪ A 3.1 at 3:21 a.m. Tuesday, 16 km west-southwest of Patterson. Depth 0.3 km
The Stanislaus County OES posted on Facebook, “Now is a good of time as any to have an emergency plan. Visit www.ready.gov/earthquakes for more details on planning for earthquakes.”
Paul Laustsen, a science communicator with the USGS, said people always should be prepared for natural hazards. “Shaking can be startling and concerning for people, but it’s the things that come after a large shaking event” that matter, such as possible disruptions of utilities services. Being prepared means having bottled water on hand, he said, and flashlights/lanterns or even a power generator.
The USGS has a program called ShakeAlert, Laustsen said, that lets residents know if they can expect strong shaking in their area. “It’s not a prediction tool, but when an earthquake has started, it will let people know they’ll feel the shaking and give people notice to take protective action.”
To sign up to receive ShakeAlert-powered alerts on a cell phone, visit tinyurl.com/usgsshake. On Twitter, follow ShakeAlert at @USGS_ShakeAlert.
The earthquake sequence is near both the Greenville Fault within the Diablo Range and the Great Valley Fault System, which runs along the western edge of the San Joaquin Valley, Laustsen said.
Residents across Stanislaus County, including in Modesto, Ceres and Riverbank, reported feeling at least one of the earthquakes.
Riverbank resident Jack Faria said he felt “just like a light thump in my chair. The pull chain for the ceiling fan was just barely swinging.”
Darleen Clark told The Bee, “My nephew, Tyler, felt the earthquake at around 9:13 p.m. last night here on Topeka St. near downtown Riverbank. He said it felt like the floor was shaking. No damage. It surprised him!”
From Salida, Katherine Borges said, ”My son, Josh Borges, felt the quake here in Salida and said our chandelier was swinging.”
This story was originally published September 19, 2023 at 8:03 AM.
