A magnitude 4.4 earthquake occurred east of downtown Los Angeles at 4:04 a.m. The epicenter was in Pico Rivera, between east L.A. and Whittier, at a depth of about 11.7 miles. Millions of Southern Californians were jolted awake by the temblor, but there have been no reports of injuries, damage or power outages.
For now all is well
An Associated Press release reports Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Steve Rudahat said that “All is calm in the city of Los Angeles .” Calm may be a dramatic overstatement at any time in Los Angeles, but the point is well taken: The quake was a small one.
No injuries or damage
There were initial reports of damage to part of southbound Interstate 5, though there is often heavy traffic. Damage in the area is believed to be due to normal wear and tear. Perhaps some instant cash loans from some money lenders will be what the doctor ordered for the freeway.
Smaller jolts throughout the area
In the realm of Southern California earthquakes, today’s was a small one, but it stretched over a large swath of land. The USGS Earthquake Hazards Program reported a radius of 10 miles, from San Bernadino County to Santa Monica. Reports of the quake came from as far away as Watts, Sun City, West L.A. and Riverside.
Whittier fault line believed to be at fault
Some sources state that it has not yet been determined which fault was responsible for the quake, although Nowpublic.com reports that the quake struck along the Whittier fault line and that Cal Tech seismologist Kate Hutton describes it as a thrust earthquake, in which only one side of the fault line moves.
In October 1987, a magnitude 5.9 earthquake caused over $ 350 million in damages and killed eight people. Hutton believes this may have been a precursor to a larger event, but as time passes, the likelihood of such an event diminishes.
