"Good morning Southern California! Did you feel the magnitude 4.8 earthquake about two miles northwest of El Centro at 12.36 a.m.? The #ShakeAlert system was activated," the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Shake Alert account recently posted on X. (Related: The Big One is coming: New study suggests California could be hit by a major earthquake soon.)
The National Weather Service's San Diego branch similarly posted: "It has been a busy night to our east...several small earthquakes have occurred in El Centro in the past 15 minutes. A couple of them were felt at our office. As of 12:53 a.m. there have been 13!"
Officials said the USGS's Shake Alert system estimated at least one of the earthquakes registered a magnitude above 5.0, triggering alerts to cell phones.
Although some near the area said they hadn’t felt the tremors, one X user wrote: "Definitely felt much stronger than a 4.8." Another added: “Earthquake swarms just as I was about to go to bed. Strong enough for things to fall and break. Sadly, a few broken decorations.”
According to the Southern California Earthquake Data Center, California and Nevada have been hit by a total of 945 earthquakes in seven days.
What happened to San Andreas fault?
When people hear about earthquakes in California, most immediately think of the San Andreas fault system. But meteorologists have confirmed that the recent spate of quakes were caused by the San Jacinto fault system, which runs further south than the San Andreas fault.
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Recently, USGS said 27 significant quakes of at least magnitude 2.5 have hit the state within 24 hours. While that certainly isn't anything to freak out about, it is noteworthy.
USGS scientists have further assured the public that this is not "the Big One" – an anticipated mega earthquake expected to hit somewhere along the Western United States.
When the Big One finally arrives, a writer for the End of the American Dream, noted that the ground on the western side of a major fault line could suddenly drop by several feet or more. Much of that area is barely above sea level, which could potentially allow the Pacific Ocean to come rushing in.
The rapid cluster of earthquakes also came just two days after a 4.6 magnitude earthquake hit several miles northwest of Malibu, Florida. Dr. Lucy Jones, a California earthquake expert colloquially referred to as "the Beyonce of earthquakes," noted that there was an approximately five percent chance of a larger earthquake hitting southern California soon after the Florida quake.
But Jones was also quick to dismiss the possibility that the recent quakes are connected to the larger, 5.7 magnitude temblor that hit the Big Island of Hawaii on the same day of the earthquake in Malibu.
Visit Disaster.news for more stories about earthquakes.
Watch this video speculating whether "megaquakes" will hit the Western U.S. in 2024.
This video is from the Evolutionary Energy Arts channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
Virginia hit by series of small earthquakes, suggesting that a larger quake is coming.
Tsunami preparedness: Tips on how to survive monster waves.
Historic rains and flooding push California fault lines toward the "Big One."
NASA confirms 1,000-lb meteoroid the cause behind loud explosion reported in Texas.
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