Earthquake Recap: Five Quakes Hit Santa Clara County

Five earthquakes shook Santa Clara County last week, with the largest one hitting one mile west of Cupertino. The closest quake to reach Campbell hit 15 miles away in Cupertino.

The tremor reached a magnitude of 1.8 on the Richter Scale on Thursday at 12:53 p.m., and hit four miles south-southeast of Los Altos. 

The second largest quake measured in at 1.7, and struck four miles north east of Milpitas on Friday at 12:08 p.m. Another quake shook South County just a few hours later at 5:58 p.m. The shock, reaching 1.6, hit four miles south south-west of Gilroy and eight miles south of San Martin.

Two small quakes measuring in at 1.5 shook the county toward the beginning of the week, with the first one striking five miles east north-east of Gilroy, seven miles south south-east of San Martin and 11 miles south east of Morgan Hill at 2:41 a.m. on Sunday, July 22. 

The second 1.5 temblor is believed to be the result of a quarry explosion occurring seven miles near a quarry east of Cupertino, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) website. The quake hit three miles south of Los Altos, three miles west of Cupertino and four miles south south-east of Los Altos Hills at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday. 

Generally, earthquakes that fail to break the 2.0 mark on the scale are difficult to feel far from the epicenter. As of Saturday afternoon, no one reported feeling the five tremors in Santa Clara County this week on the USGS website.

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