Magnitude 4.5 Quake Jolts Upper Sacramento Valley
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake centered just outside Redding in the upper Sacramento Valley early Tuesday broke windows and did other scattered minor damage but caused no injuries, local authorities reported.
The quake occurred at 1:38 a.m. and was centered three miles northwest of the city of 70,000. It awoke many residents.
David Oppenheimer of the U.S. Geological Survey said the temblor was unusually strong for the vicinity. He said seismic records going back to 1962 show no other quake over 4.0 in size in the immediate Redding area.
This jolt was a thrust earthquake at a depth of about 15 miles, Oppenheimer said. This means the movement of the earth was vertical, and the scientist said it occurred on a very shallow dipping plane.
Thrust earthquakes have taken place in other parts of California’s Central Valley, such as Coalinga in 1983. In general, however, the San Joaquin and Sacramento valleys are less seismically active than many other parts of the state.
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