CSUMB, local community shaken by recent earthquakes

Students, faculty and staff at California State University, Monterey Bay (CSUMB) had an unpleasant surprise on Oct. 15, as the campus and surrounding communities were rocked by a magnitude 4.7 earthquake. Its epicenter was about 16 miles from Hollister, according to the United States Geological Survey.

Although the tremor was minor compared to what was felt closer to the epicenter, it still rattled classrooms, living spaces and the nerves of many students. The quake lasted only a couple seconds, and no injuries or damage were reported on CSUMB’s campus.

The quake was felt around the Monterey Bay area, the Salinas Valley area and in the communities just south of the San Francisco Bay Area. Graphic credit to usgs.earthquakes.gov.

While quakes are certainly not uncommon in California, they can still be pretty unsettling, especially when they are of more significant magnitude. For years, scientists have talked about the “Big One” – a significant and potentially destructive seismic event that will inevitably occur along the San Andreas fault line at some point in time. As to when this seismic event will happen, no one can truly know for sure.

There have been a number of large earthquakes in California this year, in both the northern and southern regions of the state. In July, a magnitude 6.4 preceded a magnitude 7.1 quake in the Ridgecrest area of southeastern California, causing significant damage to infrastructure in the region and rattling cities as far away as Anaheim and Los Angeles proper. The night before the Oct. 15 quake, a magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck the East Bay Area and was felt as far south as Santa Cruz and as far west as Marin County north of San Francisco.

For students who come from southern California, the recent earthquake was a jarring reminder of the frightening larger quakes over the summer. Second-year student Eric Holst, who was home for the summer in Anaheim during the Ridgecrest earthquakes, was especially surprised.

“I didn’t expect the quakes to happen here, considering most happen in the Bay Area or SoCal,” he said.

For others at CSUMB, it was their first experience with a seismic event. Exchange student Jonas Haupt, who is from Germany, didn’t even know he was experiencing an earthquake until after it was over.

“I actually thought it was just our neighbors going nuts, I didn’t realize it was an earthquake,” Haupt explained.

Leave a Reply

Recent Articles

May horoscopes

Aries (March 21 - April 19) After dealing with your own important responsibilities, Aries, you may still find yourself feeling energetic. You may find yourself...

Letter from the editor

Dear Otters,  I would like to start off by saying thank you to all of our readers for your continued support of volume 6 of...

Otters ready for NCAA West Regionals after another successful season

Following a 13-9 win against California State San Bernardino (CSUSB) in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Championship Tournament conference title game, just hours...

Entrepreneur and 2023 graduate starting non-profit art gallery

When Libbie Jameson noticed a lack of recognition for California State University, Monterey Bay (CSUMB) students’ creativity, she came up with a business plan...

Related Articles