By: Latimes
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Emergency operation [/caption]A long, rolling 6.0 earthquake shook a wide swath of the Bay Area awake early Sunday, prompting Gov. Jerry Brown to declare a state of emergency. The temblor damaged buildings, cut off power to tens of thousands, sparked fires, and sent at least 89 people to a hospital including three who were in critical condition.
Centered about nine miles south of wine country's Napa at 3:20 a.m., the quake was felt as far south as Santa Cruz and into Sonoma County. It was the largest earthquake to strike the Bay Area since the 6.9 Loma Prieta temblor of 1989, the U.S. Geological Survey said.
A little more than two hours after the quake, a shallow magnitude 3.6 tremor was reported by the USGS. The aftershock occurred at 5:47 a.m. at a depth of five miles. The National California Seismic System put the chance of a strong aftershock in the next week at 54%. Scientists at UC Berkely released a video showing an early-warning system that sent an alert 10 seconds before the earthquake.
Napa residents walked the streets of downtown in a daze at first light Sunday taking stock. Buildings were partially crumbled, homes torn apart with dressers, televisions and the contents of refrigerators torn asunder.
At least three people were seriously hurt, including a child who was flown to Santa Rosa Community Hospital after a fireplace fell on the child. A spokeswoman at Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa said most of its injured patients had cuts, bumps and bruises. Many are being treated and released, but some have been admitted. There were about 80 calls for medical help.
The quake prompted about 100 calls about potential gas leaks, and 30 water main leaks and breaks. The leaks prompted officials to open two evacuation centers at Napa High School and Grace Church of Napa Valley. A number of historic buildings have been damaged, including the Sam Kee Laundry, Goodman Library and the Napa County Courthouse, according to the city.
Residents reported power outages in Napa and beyond, and fire departments in several counties, along with the California Highway Patrol, were on the lookout for damage to bridges. Pictures flooding in from Twitter showed damage in homes and in the street.
According to a PG&E map, more than 42,000 customers were without power across the northern Bay Area, including American Canyon, Napa, St. Helena, Santa Rosa and Sonoma
Gov. Brown said full emergency services have been activated: "These public safety officials are doing all they can to help residents, and those living in affected areas should follow their guidance and instruction,” he said in a statement.
The CHP reported that California 121 at California 29 is damaged, with cracks that could cause flat tires. The CHP for the Solano district dispatched its graveyard shift immediately to search for damage and quickly found it: An overpass in Vallejo on California 37 headed toward American Canyon showed several areas where the roadway had separated and concrete had crumbled.
CHP Sgt. Eric Lund said key bridges -- the Carquinez and Benicia bridges -- were cleared as damage free. The highway overpass was briefly ordered closed as "a precaution," he said, as California Department of Transportation engineers reviewed it. It reopened shortly after 6 a.m.
According to the USGS, the earthquake occurred within 44 miles of a set of major faults along the San Andreas fault system that forms the boundary between the Pacific and North American tectonic plates.
Jennifer Patefield, 47, who runs the boutique Mariposa Ice Creamery store in Napa, said she was "jolted" awake and counted to 40 before motion stopped. The fridge emptied its contents and the china cabinet was "gone," Patefield said, and just about everything hanging on the walls of the family home about a half-mile from the historic downtown came tumbling down.
"I surf and it was like riding a big wave," said Patefield, as she assessed the damage downtown with her husband, daughter and son. As for her store, she feared the entire stock of the small-batch ice cream prepared there would be lost if the power wasn't restored soon.
"Every chimney is down in our neighborhood," said Mackenzie Patefield, 15, who was worried about her high school chemistry lab. "We were doing experiments and those chemicals are probably all over the place," she said.
Tourists were also out in force, some of them startled by the force of nature.
"We just have snowstorms where we come from," said Cheryllyn Tallman, 56, who with her husband runs a tire dealership associated with Bridgestone. They were in the area for the scheduled GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma race. Her husband was sound asleep when the quake hit.
"For a man who never uses inappropriate language, I heard some colorful words come out," said Tallman, who took a tip from what she'd seen on TV and headed for a doorway.
Bevin O'Brien, 35, was shaking slightly as she walked the streets of downtown to check on City Winery, where she tends bar. She had been told not to come to work. O'Brien, who is from Tucson, called her first quake experience "terrifying."
"We could hear it before we felt it, like someone was aggressively running up the stairs," she said. She and her boyfriend were awake, watching "Dateline" on the couch. It was a lucky turn. The dresser fell onto her bed and the TV in that room went flying.
Talk among many was of the monetary loss likely suffered. But a sense of community prevailed.
Victor Davis, 49, who works for a local bed and breakfast he declined to name, said he was reaching for a book in the midst of a slight bout of insomnia when the quake hit. He set to work helping the 20 guests evacuate, as the kitchen is now inoperable.
"We had them sit outside and look at the stars and I brought them blankets and slippers," he said.
Megan Hill, 52, was also marveling at the camaraderie. She ran down the hall to check on her 22-year-old daughter and slammed so hard into an open door that she suffered a deep cut to her collarbone.
Her neighborhood, on what downtown locals call one of the "tree streets," quickly banded together, surveying for gas leaks and injuries in groups. At one home, a neighbor came in to read to a group of young children while their parents attended to the crisis.
A fifth grade teacher, Hill said she had awakened at midnight worrying about her classroom, which she had not yet earthquake proofed.
"Did I think about my own home? No," she said with a smile.
Her chickens, she said, "went crazy" when the quake hit. She went outside in the dark and sang "Goodnight Ladies" to them.