7.1 Magnitude Quake Rattles Southern California

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LOS ANGELES, CA — A 7.1 quake epicentered in Ridgecrest Friday evening sent shockwaves across the region while damaging buildings, triggering fires and causing injuries in the Ridgecrest area.

At magnitude 7.1, it’s the largest quake to hit Southern California in decades, and it further rattled nerves frayed by a sequence of hundreds of sizable quakes over the last day. Seismologists warned residents to brace themselves: more big quakes are likely over the next week.

Earthquakes of at least 7.0 are considered “major.”

While there were no reports of major injuries or damage, at least 25,000 people reported to the United States Geological Survey that they had felt the quake. They said that the ShakeAlert system detected the quake in eight seconds.

The USGS said that Friday night’s temblor was a shallow quake that could be felt far and wide. The quake occurred at 8:19 p.m. about four miles from Ridgecrest. However, strong shaking was felt across Los Angeles, as far south as Oceanside, as far north as San Jose, and it even triggered evacuations of skyscrapers in Las Vegas.

On Saturday morning, the USGS estimated economic losses of at least $1 billion dollars, “less than 1% of GDP of the United States.”

The quake caused a rockslide that forced the closure of State Route 178 leading to the Sequoia National Forest. It also left some in the nearby Trona community without water, prompting the Ridgecrest Police Department to make an urgent plea for water bottle donations.

The quake was almost immediately followed by 15 aftershocks of notable size including six quakes larger than a magnitude 4.0. Within two hours, dozens of aftershocks hit, with most ranging from magnitude 3.0 to 5.5.

As of Saturday morning, it was estimated that there were more than 600 aftershocks.

Governor Gavin Newsom activated the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to its highest level in response to the earthquake, sending mutual aid to local first responders. Police and firefighters in several counties have been systematically patrolling for damage, and trains across Southern California were delayed as crews inspected lines for damage.

Only minor injuries reported as a result of the 7.1 magnitude earthquake in Ridgecrest, according to police chief Jed McLaughlin. The city’s water system is intact without contamination, and the hospital is under a “shelter in place” order until the integrity of the building can be assessed, he said Friday night.

Authorities believe the quake also caused power outages for thousands of Southern California Edison customers in the Ridgecrest area and may also be responsible for an outage affecting 1,000 people in the Encino area more than 130 miles to the south.

By Saturday morning, Southern California Edison reported that power to many had been restored.

The quake hit in the same location as Thursday’s big 6.4 temblor. Because of the strength of Friday’s massive quake, Thursday’s quake has since been dubbed a “foreshock” to the larger incident, Seismologist Dr. Lucy Jones said at a press conference Friday night. She interrupted her live press conference about the quake at Pasadena’s Caltech to warn reporters of an early warning alert for a strong aftershock, and 12 seconds later the room was rattled by a magnitude 5.1 quake. Pasadena is more than 140 miles from the quake’s epicenter.

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Jones warned people to continue to expect more large quakes, noting there is a chance an even larger quake could strike in the next few days. Jones also warned that a magnitude 6 aftershock is very likely. She offered a bit of reassurance, however, noting she’s never seen quakes as large as magnitude 6.4 and 7.1 in California followed by an even larger quake.

There is a 50 percent chance of a magnitude 6 or greater quake and about a 10 percent chance of a magnitude 7 or greater temblor in the next week, Jones said.

On Saturday morning, the USGS updated those numbers to say that, “according to our forecast, over the next 1 Week there is a 4% chance of one or more aftershocks that are larger than magnitude 7.1. It is likely that there will be smaller earthquakes over the next 1 Week, with 360 to 660 magnitude 3 or higher aftershocks.”

Once again, first responders were inundated with calls, and at least one person reported to Patch that they were not able to get through to loved ones in Ridgecrest by phone. The USGS earthquake map briefly crashed following the quake.

The quake interrupted an exhibition basketball game at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas and startled fans at Dodger Stadium.

For perspective, the 6.4 magnitude quake that struck on the Fourth of July was considerably smaller than Friday’s quake, and that one triggered about a dozen emergency incidents including injuries and fires. Authorities reported that several buildings had been found with minor cracks, along with broken water mains, downed power lines and rockslides on certain roads.

The strikeslip responsible for the near-constant quakes hitting Ridgecrest over the past 36 hours is not connected to the San Andreas fault which runs along the most populous parts of California, according to Jones. The Ridgecrest quakes are not likely to trigger quakes along the San Andreas, which is more than 100 miles away, according to seismologists.

The cluster of quakes is known as the Searles Valley sequence, Jones said.

“This was a M7.1 on the same fault as has been producing the Searles Valley sequence. This is part of the same sequence.”

All of these large quakes are actually extending the fault line creating them, she explained.

“So the fault is growing. We ruptured a piece in the first earthquake. We ruptured a bit more in the 5.4 this morning, and we are rupturing more now,” she told reporters. “It is moving toward the northwest away from the metropolitan area.”

A large foreshock also struck in Ridgecrest early Friday morning, prompting Los Angeles firefighters to hit the streets to survey for damage caused by the magnitude 5.4 aftershock.
Since Thursday morning, more than 300 quakes of 2.5 magnitude shook the Searles Valley. The shaking has been near constant with dozens of quakes being a magnitude 3.0 or larger.

For residents living in Los Angeles County, the early warning system app ShakeAlertLA is available. It is designed to give warning of a pending quake that registers as a magnitude 5.0 or larger in Los Angeles County. Experts are advising Californians to take this opportunity to create an earthquake emergency kit and prepare a family emergency plan.

Californians should be prepared to be self-sufficient for 72 hours following an earthquake or other major disaster. That includes having a first-aid kit, medications, food and enough water for each member of a household to drink one gallon per day for at least 72 hours, according to local and state officials. Food and medication for pets should also be included.

Homeowners and renters should also know how to turn off the gas in their house or apartment in case of leaks.

Patch Editor Renee Schiavone contributed to this report. City News Service contributed to this report.

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