By Carolyn Leal
An earthquake shook Saratoga along with much of Northern California at 1:50 p.m. May 21, jarring some residents, while others barely felt the temblor.
The U.S. Geological Survey put its magnitude at 4.7 on the Richter scale and its epicenter 10 miles east of San Jose on the Calaveras Fault. The mini-quake provided a reminder that this is earthquake country.
"If felt like somebody ran into the side of the building--just one big jolt," said Sgt. Mike Van Leiden of the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Westside Substation in Saratoga. There were no reports of damage in Saratoga, Cupertino or county areas, Van Leiden said.
At Argonaut School, teacher Mikki Gordon yelled, "It's an earthquake," and her first-grade students ducked under their desks as they had been taught to do in earthquake-preparedness drills.
Next, the school telephones started ringing. Argonaut School aide Jackie Handy said she did not feel the quake in the school office, but that many parents did.
"People felt it and wanted to know if the kids were OK," Handy said.
At Villa Montalvo, which was heavily damaged by the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989, last week's quake was felt as a sharp jolt but it did no damage, said a Montalvo Box Office spokesperson.
A fire caused by a toppled water heater in a San Jose apartment was reported, and a San Jose man accidentally shot himself fleeing the earthquake with a pistol in his hand.
The earthquake brought the trial of the man accused of killing Polly Klaas to an abrupt halt.
Sex crimes expert Park Dietz had resumed the stand for testimony when there was a series of short, sharp jolts followed by a gentle swaying.
The trial is being held on the sixth floor of the San Jose Hall of Justice.
As spectators looked nervously at the ceiling, deputies whisked defendant Richard Allen Davis through a side door.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, May 29, 1996.
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