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Magnitude 6.0 earthquake hits northern California Magnitude 6.0 earthquake hits San Francisco Bay Area in biggest earthquake since 1989
(35 minutes later)
An earthquake measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale has hit northern California. An earthquake measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale has hit northern California, causing some property damage.
It struck four miles north-west of the town of American Canyon in Napa County and there have been no immediate reports of fatalities or property damage. It struck four miles north-west of the town of American Canyon in Napa County and is the biggest earthquake the San Francisco Bay Area has seen since 1989.
There has also been no tsunami warning. There have been no immediate reports of fatalities, with only power outages and some property damage having been reported.
The US Geological Survey said that it first struck at 3.20am local time (10.20am GMT) at a depth of 6.7 miles, and could be felt in the San Francisco Bay Area. The US Geological Survey said that it first struck at 3.20am local time (10.20am GMT) at a depth of 6.7 miles.
One Twitter user said: "pretty shaky shock waves of magnitude more than 6 on Richter Scale felt at Alemany Boulevard, San Francisco!" The government agency gave the quake an 'orange' status, which says that while fatalities are expected to be low, economic losses could be significant.
More to follow. "Significant damage is likely and the disaster is potentially widespread," the report states.
It added: "Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are highly resistant to earthquake shaking, though some vulnerable structures exist."
In 1989 an earthquake measuring 6.9 struck the Santa Cruz area of California, killing 62 people, according to government figures.
Prior to that one there had been quakes of 5.7 and 5.8 in 1983 and 1980 respectively.
This "perceived shaking" of this earthquake is said by the US Geological Survey to have been "severe" for about 15,000 residents at the very epicentre.
It also said potential structural damage to vulnerable buildings could be "heavy".
MC Hammer has been live tweeting the earthquake after saying he was by the San Francisco airport: "I know they're on top of it at the airports but it was violent enough to damage runways .. #earthquakesSF", he said.
Earthquake just shook the city ..
Another Twitter user said: "pretty shaky shock waves of magnitude more than 6 on Richter Scale felt at Alemany Boulevard, San Francisco!"
Spokesman for the San Francisco Police Department, Albie Esparza, said: "All facilities reported no damage at this time, and operations continue normally."