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Is the "Big One" coming soon? Southern California struck by 13 earthquakes in 25 minutes

By zoeysky // 2024-02-18

Parts of California were hit by more than a dozen earthquakes overnight on Feb. 12, with 13 quakes shaking the state within only 25 minutes. "Good morning Southern California! Did you feel the magnitude 4.8 earthquake about two miles north-west of El Centro at 12.36am? The #ShakeAlert system was activated," posted the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Shake Alert account on X. El Centro is a city in the Imperial Valley in the southern California border region. The quakes continued until 1:01 a.m., when the 13th quake of the series that started less than a half hour earlier was recorded. The National Weather Service's (NWS) San Diego office also announced on X that "It has been a busy night to our east." The agency mentioned that several small earthquakes "have occurred in El Centro in the past 15 minutes." The NWS's post also mentioned that the office felt several of the quakes and that as of 12:53 a.m., there have been 13 earthquakes. El Centro is located about 30 miles east of the San Diego County border and more than 100 miles from San Diego proper, but residents of the city submitted reports of weak shaking to the USGS. There have been no reports of any damage from the series of early-morning earthquakes in Southern California. Officials explained that the USGS’s Shake Alert system estimated at least one of the earthquakes registered a magnitude above 5.0, which triggered alerts to cell phones. The rapid cluster of earthquakes happened two days after a 4.6 magnitude earthquake hit several miles northwest of Malibu on Friday, Feb. 9. Authorities reassured that there were no major damage or injuries reported. Dr. Lucy Jones, a California quake expert called "the Beyonce of Earthquakes," said in an interview that there was a five percent chance of a larger earthquake in southern California soon after. (Related: Historic rains and flooding push California fault lines toward the "Big One.")

3.8 Magnitude earthquake hit Ontario, California

Just days after the series of earthquakes, another one hit the state on Thursday, Feb. 15. A 3.8 magnitude earthquake hit Southern California near San Bernardino County, reported the USGS. According to the USGS, the earthquake hit just outside of Ontario, California, about six miles south of Rancho Cucamonga and about 18 miles southwest of San Bernardino. The quake could be felt as far away as Los Angeles and Huntington Beach, the USGS added. The USGS added that the earthquake originated about eight miles underground and struck around 11:38 p.m. local time Thursday. Fortunately, there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries. According to the USGS, damage depends on different variables like the total distance from the earthquake, what type of soil you are on, and building construction. The USGS added that damage does not usually occur until the earthquake magnitude reaches somewhere above 4 or 5. Go to Disaster.news for other reports about earthquakes and other natural and man-made disasters. Watch the video below for an earthquake update as seismic unrest spreads across the world. This video is from the Alex Hammer channel on Brighteon.com.

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California disaster natural disaster Southern California earthquakes survivors injuries tremors USGS property damage aftershocks