Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Small Earthquake Rattles Southern California
d8a347b41db1ddee634e2d67d08798c102ef09ac
By The New York Times
Published 3 months ago on
March 9, 2025

The aftermath of the Palisades fire, in Malibu, Calif., Jan. 17, 2025. Residents of parts of Los Angeles County on Sunday afternoon felt a minor earthquake centered west of Malibu, Calif. and preliminary estimates showed that the quake had a magnitude of 4.1, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. (Mark Abramson/The New York Times)

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Residents of parts of Los Angeles County on Sunday afternoon felt a minor earthquake centered west of Malibu, California. Preliminary estimates showed that the quake had a magnitude of 4.1, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Authorities said they had no reports of any injuries or damage in the immediate aftermath of the quake. The Los Angeles Fire Department said the earthquake was not strong enough to have triggered an official earthquake response.

Alan Delarosa, 47, a manager at Geoffrey’s, an open-air restaurant in Malibu overlooking the Pacific Ocean, was in an office when the quake occurred, shortly after 1 p.m. “I basically felt the room rocking back and forth,” he said.

The disturbance lasted about three seconds, he said. Once it was over, Delarosa rushed to check on his guests and staff. He was worried the gas line could have broken. But his kitchen staff didn’t even register the movement. The gas line was safe. There was no broken glass. But some of his guests told him they did feel the impact shaking.

Increased Seismic Activity in California

The temblor struck during what experts say could be a period of increased seismic activity in the state, after decades of relative quiet. But its occurrence does not signal that a larger, catastrophic quake is any more likely.

Seismologists have long warned that an overdue “Big One,” the likes of which California has not experienced since 1906, could happen at any time. They have urged residents to prepare as much as possible by assembling emergency supplies and practicing “drop, cover and hold on” exercises with their children.

It has been three decades since a significant quake struck California.

The Loma Prieta earthquake, with a magnitude of 6.9, shook the Santa Cruz Mountains in 1989, leaving 63 people dead and more than 3,700 people injured.

A magnitude 6.7 quake in the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles in 1994 left 60 people dead, about 7,000 injured and more than 40,000 buildings damaged. The catastrophe also revealed a major defect in some steel-frame buildings, including many high rises, which under extreme shaking could collapse.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

By Rachel Nostrant and Bernard Mokam/Mark Abramson
c. 2025 The New York Times Company

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Sinner Bids for His First French Open Title Against Defending Champion Alcaraz

DON'T MISS

Coco Gauff Defeats Top-Ranked Aryna Sabalenka in 3 Sets to Win Her First French Open Title

DON'T MISS

Texas Beats Texas Tech in 3rd Game of WCWS to Win Its 1st National Championship

DON'T MISS

Conforto Comes Through, Dodgers Rally in 8th for Victory Abetted by Mets Mishap

DON'T MISS

Giants Beat the Slumping Braves in 10 Innings on a Wild Pitch

DON'T MISS

Trans Troops, Facing a Deadline, Opt to Stay and Fight the Ban

DON'T MISS

Can This 14-Year-Old Football Star Become a High School Millionaire?

DON'T MISS

Trump EPA Moves to Roll Back Rules Projected to Save Billions of Dollars and Thousands of Lives

DON'T MISS

Valley Foster Care Agencies Are Facing an Insurance Crisis and Possible Closure

DON'T MISS

World’s Largest Almond Processor Will Shutter Sacramento Plant. 600 Workers Impacted

UP NEXT

Coco Gauff Defeats Top-Ranked Aryna Sabalenka in 3 Sets to Win Her First French Open Title

UP NEXT

Texas Beats Texas Tech in 3rd Game of WCWS to Win Its 1st National Championship

UP NEXT

Conforto Comes Through, Dodgers Rally in 8th for Victory Abetted by Mets Mishap

UP NEXT

Giants Beat the Slumping Braves in 10 Innings on a Wild Pitch

UP NEXT

Trans Troops, Facing a Deadline, Opt to Stay and Fight the Ban

UP NEXT

Can This 14-Year-Old Football Star Become a High School Millionaire?

UP NEXT

Trump EPA Moves to Roll Back Rules Projected to Save Billions of Dollars and Thousands of Lives

UP NEXT

Valley Foster Care Agencies Are Facing an Insurance Crisis and Possible Closure

UP NEXT

World’s Largest Almond Processor Will Shutter Sacramento Plant. 600 Workers Impacted

UP NEXT

Trump Eyes Major Funding Cuts for California, Including All Public Universities

Conforto Comes Through, Dodgers Rally in 8th for Victory Abetted by Mets Mishap

6 hours ago

Giants Beat the Slumping Braves in 10 Innings on a Wild Pitch

6 hours ago

Trans Troops, Facing a Deadline, Opt to Stay and Fight the Ban

8 hours ago

Can This 14-Year-Old Football Star Become a High School Millionaire?

8 hours ago

Trump EPA Moves to Roll Back Rules Projected to Save Billions of Dollars and Thousands of Lives

8 hours ago

Valley Foster Care Agencies Are Facing an Insurance Crisis and Possible Closure

8 hours ago

World’s Largest Almond Processor Will Shutter Sacramento Plant. 600 Workers Impacted

22 hours ago

Trump Eyes Major Funding Cuts for California, Including All Public Universities

23 hours ago

Farming Regulation Costs Rise 1,300% Since 2006: Cal Poly

23 hours ago

Southern California Air Regulators Weigh a Plan to Phase Out Gas Furnaces and Water Heaters

24 hours ago

Sinner Bids for His First French Open Title Against Defending Champion Alcaraz

PARIS — Top-ranked Jannik Sinner has not yet dropped a set in his bid to win the French Open for the first time. Defending champion Carlos A...

6 hours ago

6 hours ago

Sinner Bids for His First French Open Title Against Defending Champion Alcaraz

6 hours ago

Coco Gauff Defeats Top-Ranked Aryna Sabalenka in 3 Sets to Win Her First French Open Title

6 hours ago

Texas Beats Texas Tech in 3rd Game of WCWS to Win Its 1st National Championship

6 hours ago

Conforto Comes Through, Dodgers Rally in 8th for Victory Abetted by Mets Mishap

6 hours ago

Giants Beat the Slumping Braves in 10 Innings on a Wild Pitch

9 hours ago

Trans Troops, Facing a Deadline, Opt to Stay and Fight the Ban

9 hours ago

Can This 14-Year-Old Football Star Become a High School Millionaire?

9 hours ago

Trump EPA Moves to Roll Back Rules Projected to Save Billions of Dollars and Thousands of Lives

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend