3.6 Magnitude Quake Strikes Near Vallejo, California

A 3.6 magnitude earthquake struck near Vallejo in Northern California on Thursday afternoon, rattling the San Francisco Bay Area and prompting reports from more than 1,200 residents who felt the tremor.

The quake occurred at 12:41 p.m. Pacific time, originating about two miles south of Vallejo at a depth of six miles, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Light shaking was reported across a wide region, including Berkeley, Benicia, Hercules, Richmond, Burlingame and San Francisco. Vallejo lies roughly 60 miles southwest of Sacramento, placing the event in a seismically active zone along the Pacific Coast.

No injuries or significant damage were immediately reported, consistent with the quake's moderate intensity. Earthquakes of this magnitude, between 2.5 and 5.4 on the moment magnitude scale, are typically felt but seldom cause structural harm, experts note. The scale, which measures the energy released at an earthquake's source, has largely replaced the older Richter scale.

Social media users in the Bay Area quickly shared their experiences. One post on X, formerly Twitter, read, "Earthquake AND rain... great." Another asked, "Anyone else in the Bay just feel that Earthquake?"