4.6-magnitude earthquake shakes Southern California
9 February 2024, 22:34
There were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries.
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.6 struck the Southern California coast near Malibu on Friday afternoon and was widely felt in the Los Angeles region.
There were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries
The quake struck at 1.47pm at a depth of eight miles (13 kilometres), according to the US Geological Survey.
The area is in the Santa Monica Mountains, roughly 35 miles (56 kilometres) west of downtown Los Angeles.
The earthquake was felt from the Malibu coast south to Orange County and east to downtown Los Angeles.
The Los Angeles Fire Department reported that it was “widely felt” in Los Angeles, though there was no immediate indication of damage or injuries.
In Malibu Village Books, a store near Malibu Lagoon State Beach, customers and staff hesitated as the floor shook.
“We definitely did feel it here,” bookseller Emma Carroll told the Los Angeles Times. “But we are all OK.”
She said a few books fell off the shelves, but “nothing too bad.”
The US National Tsunami Warning Centre reported that no tsunami was triggered.
Friday is the 53rd anniversary of the 1971 San Fernando earthquake, which was recorded as magnitude 6.6.
Also known as the Sylmar earthquake, it killed 64 people and caused more than 500 million dollars (£396 million) in damage.
