WESTWOOD—A tremor woke a majority of Los Angeles on March 17. The United States Geological Survey measured a 4.4 magnitude quake epicentered near Westwood at 6:30 am in a shake that some say lasted 20 seconds.
The depth of the earthquake was measured nine miles deep away from the famous San Andreas fault line that spreads across most of California. Cities as close as Beverly Hills and as far away as Sacramento felt the shudder of the Earth.
Most Los Angeles newscasts continued to do reporting as the earthquake occurred during live TV. According to Los Angeles Emergency Services, no severe damage was reported in the Los Angeles county area. There were a few small number of damage reports from items falling off store shelves to the nearby beaches creating higher than usual waves for a brief time.
No reports of tsunamis were reported and no threat of aftershocks appeared. A 6.8 magnitude earthquake took place on March 10, off the northern California coast shaking up residents in the morning. The event was epicentered on the Pacific Plate which binds most of what is called “The Ring Of Fire” as a whole.
Celebrity residents chimed in minutes after the tremor with many making jokes. “Pretty Little Liars” star Lucy Hale tweeted “Natures alarm clock for me: Earthquake.” Jimmy Kimmel tweeted, “Here’s how it goes now…Oh my God earthquake…where’s my phone? I have to tweet.”
Some stars new to Los Angeles felt it for the first time and responded accordingly. Hale’s co star Ashley Benson tweeted “OMG. Biggest earthquake I’ve ever felt.” Nicki Minaj shared her sentiment tweeting, “That was the scariest earthquake this lil New York girl ever experienced in Cali. Unbelievable this time.”
Los Angelesresidents of the 1994 earthquake that devastated Northridge California measuring 6.7 on the richter scale. The Westwood quake was 900 times weaker than what occurred 20 years ago.
By Rudy Martinez
