Overview
- Early Thursday a series of moderate offshore quakes struck off Northern California, including a magnitude 5.7 west-southwest of Pistol River and a magnitude 5.1 about 40 miles west of Petrolia followed minutes later by a magnitude 4.5 aftershock.
- The 5.1 event occurred at a very shallow depth of roughly 0.2 kilometers and the 5.7 was measured at about 10 kilometers, a combination that can boost local shaking even at moderate magnitudes.
- Officials and the U.S. Tsunami Warning Center reported no tsunami threat and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services said there were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries.
- Smaller, related quakes were recorded elsewhere in the region, including a preliminary magnitude 3.0 near San Juan Bautista and a magnitude 4.1 that rattled the Las Vegas Valley, with Nevada seismologists reporting no immediate damage.
- USGS and regional seismology labs are continuing to monitor the sequence and emergency agencies are urging residents to stay prepared because aftershocks are likely and earthquakes cannot be predicted.