CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : SAN LUIS OBISPO : Quake Triggers Nuclear Plant Alert

A mild earthquake off the coast triggered a routine alert at the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant near here, but few people felt it and there were no reports of damage or injuries. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake measured magnitude 4.1, but officials at Caltech in Pasadena said the magnitude was 3.6. The agencies gave about the same location for the epicenter, with the Geological Survey placing it 33 miles southwest of San Luis Obispo and Caltech putting it 40 miles west of Santa Maria. As is routine for earthquakes detected at the twin-reactor nuclear plant, the quake triggered an “unusual event,” the lowest-grade emergency declaration, but both reactors kept operating at full power.