Southern California rattled by 4.7 quake, fires add to chaos
On Thursday, Southern California was hit by a magnitude of 4.7 earthquake. The tremors were felt in many parts of the region, and the epicentre was located 6.4 kilometres north of Malibu, 11.3 kilometres below the earth's surface, as reported by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The earthquake reached even Orange County, 72.4 kilometres from the epicentre.
This is yet another earthquake in this area. Seismologist Lucy Jones from the California Institute of Technology, cited by AP, explained that this is a typical earthquake for Southern California.
The epicentre of the tremors was located 6.4 kilometres north of Malibu, and their source reached 11.3 kilometres below the earth's surface. The tremors were felt within 72.4 kilometres, including in Orange County. Residents of Malibu reported boulders falling onto roads, and in Santa Monica, the wooden pier from 1909 shook.
Paris Hilton: The earthquake was terrifying
On social media, posts appeared from people who experienced the tremors. Among them were comments from celebrities describing their reactions.
That #Earthquake was scary – wrote celebrity Paris Hilton on the X platform, who was woken up by the tremors.
Other people, including Khloe Kardashian, also shared their experiences.
Damn, that was a big one - wrote Khloe Kardashian.
Effects of the earthquake
Despite the strength of the tremors, no serious injuries or major destruction have been reported so far. After the main earthquake, several smaller aftershocks were recorded, which is common in this region.
It is worth mentioning that California experienced over a dozen earthquakes of similar strength in 2023. In August, tremors with a magnitude of 4.4 were felt from Los Angeles to San Diego, and in February, Malibu experienced a 4.6 magnitude earthquake.
"While this is above the average of eight to 10 a year in the past few decades, it’s too soon to tell whether the increased activity is statistically significant," Lucy Jones noted.
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, USGS geophysicist Morgan Page warned that there is "a one in 20 chance" that Thursday's earthquake could be followed by an aftershock of 4.7 magnitude or higher.
Not just the earthquake
The seismic events in California coincided with three large fires which raged east of Los Angeles. The heatwave that hit the region worsened the situation. The fires destroyed dozens of homes and forced thousands of residents to evacuate.
