The epicenter of the 5.8 Mw earthquake was a hilly area 12 km (7.5 mi) southeast of Mount Diablo and north of Livermore Valley.

Forty four people were injured and damage across the San Francisco Bay Area totaled $11.5 million, with the majority inflicted at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

[3] On January 26, a Mw  5.3 aftershock occurred with an epicenter 14 km (8.7 mi) southeast of the mainshock.

[5] Damage to property was nonstructural—consisting of fallen ceiling tiles, detached bricks from chimneys, ruptured gas and water lines, shattered windows, and mobile homes displaced from their foundations.

At a ranch north of Livermore, along Vasco Road, two brick-and-stone fireplaces were fractured and offset from their walls.