Minor quake shakes California's southwestern San Joaquin Valley
Wednesday February 19, 2003TAFT, Calif. (AP) A minor earthquake struck Wednesday next to the San Andreas Fault where it skirts the southwestern San Joaquin Valley, but apparently caused no injuries or damage.
The estimated magnitude-3.4 quake hit at 9:10 a.m., 18 miles south-southeast of Taft. The quake was not felt in Taft, police dispatcher Laura Finney said.
The quake's epicenter was approximately two miles southwest of the San Andreas, said Lucy Jones, scientist in charge of the U.S. Geological Survey's Pasadena office.
``We think it's just off the fault, and that makes it less ominous,'' Jones said. ``The probabilities of it triggering something on the San Andreas are low.''
Taft is 93 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles.
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