A magnitude 5.1 earthquake shook Berkeley on Tuesday morning, according to preliminary information from the U.S. Geological Survey.

The quake’s epicenter is listed in Joseph D. Grant County Park near San Jose, which is about 50 miles southeast of Berkeley. The earthquake was reported at 11:42 a.m. with a depth of about 4.3 miles. (It was followed five minutes later by a 3.1 earthquake near the same location, which people did not report feeling in Berkeley.)

It was the largest earthquake to hit the Bay Area in eight years. There have been 42 quakes in the region at least 5.0 in magnitude in the last century, according to USGS.

BART held trains for five minutes after the initial quake and completed track inspections by 12:21 p.m., finding no damage.

Berkeleyside reporter Supriya Yelimeli was surprised to receive a shake alert on her phone and feel the mild shake around three seconds later. “That felt like the future,” she said. (You can sign up for the alert on the USGS website or by downloading the MyShake app.)

One reader described the quake on Twitter as “soft and gentle.” Others didn’t feel it at all and said the alert left them wondering when the world might start to move.


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