In the wee Friday morning hours Southern Californians were shaken awake by a 5.2 magnitude earthquake.
The impact of the Borrego Springs area tremor was felt from Tijuana to north of Los Angeles, waking some from sleep, but there was no major damage reported according to the Los Angeles Times.
It originated from the San Jacinto Fault line in the Borrego Springs area. The first was the 5.2 magnitude earthquake at 1:04 a.m. PT. It was followed by eight more notable quakes ranging in magnitude from 3.8 to 2.6 as shown on a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) map. The Times reported that over 450 aftershocks had been reported since the first shake.
The rolling shake was felt about 80 miles away in the coastal city of Oceanside when an initial jolt led to a brief lull then a more significant shaking. A host of those shaken across soCal took to social media in response.
Pro skateboarder Tony Hawk posted:
Carlsbad resident Anita Miller posted:
The Los Angeles Police Department Communications Division tweeted:
Itica Milanes posted:
It has been about two years since the last earthquake of this magnitude in Southern California according to theTimes. In 2014 a 5.1 magnitude quake rocked La Habra. That event originated from a different fault line.
The biggest earthquake on record for California was in Fort Tejon in 1857 at magnitude 7.9 according to USGS. It is listed as the 13th largest within the 50 United States. 7.8 quakes hit San Francisco in 1906 and Imperial Valley in 1892. USGS also lists an approximately 9 magnitude earthquake in 1700 that stretched from what is now southern British Columbia in Canada to California.
USGS reports 10 other 7.2 to 6.1 magnitude “significant earthquakes” around the world since May 18. The 7.2 occurred north, northeast of Visokoi Island, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands on May 28. The others hit areas in Indonesia, Nicaragua, Taiwan, Fiji and Ecuador.
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