Earthquake story

An earthquake hit the San Francisco Bay area Monday morning. The quake hit at 8:12 a.m. PDT.

A building housing McHenry’s Auto Supply partially collapsed, killing two people and injuring six others, according to  Jennifer Vu, a public information officer from the Hayward Fire Department. "Names of the dead are being withheld pending notifications of families," Vu said.

Hayward resident Mike Beamer, whose apartment is across the street from McHenry’s, said he felt a rolling motion that lasted for around 30 seconds, with a big jolt in the middle of it.

“I was eating my breakfast when the room started rolling. I dove under the table just as I heard an explosion outside and a chunk of cement flew through my kitchen window. That’s when the screaming started across the street," Beamer said.

Hayward firefighters used ropes to stabilize the auto supply shop, organizing a search of the building and capped a gas line after detecting a gas leak at the site.

The focal point of the earthquake, which had a magnitude of 6.4 on the Richter scale, was under the Hayward Hills, according to Penny Gertz, a scientist from the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park. Gertz called the quake a “strong one” and said it occurred on the Hayward Fault, which happens to run under the hills.

"Twenty-one fire personnel, twelve police and five American Red Cross workers responded to the building collapse, with some arriving within four minutes of the quake," Vu said.

Three out of the six people injured were hurt seriously enough to require hospitalization and were transported to Hayward General Hospital, according to Vu. She also said that no other serious injuries have been reported in Hayward.

"People as far south as Los Angeles and as far north as Redding felt the quake," Gertz said.