A magnitude 3 earthquake struck north of Malibu on Saturday afternoon, the latest reported earthquake in the past week and a half.
The latest earthquake occurred at 2:15 pm on Saturday, with a crash on Kanan Dume Road, about 3.6 miles north of Point Dume.
Saturday’s event was the sixth earthquake of magnitude 3 or greater since a 4.7 earthquake in the same area was felt widely across Southern California on September 12.
Only “weak” tremors were felt in the vicinity of Saturday’s massacre, which includes Zuma Beach and Point Dume State Beach in Malibu, as defined by the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale, according to the US Geological Survey. Those powerful earthquakes are so small that most people don’t recognize them as earthquakes. If they do, the vibrations that can be heard may sound like the passing of a truck.
This has been an unusually active year for moderate earthquakes in Southern California. The Sept. 12 earthquake north of Malibu was part of a string of 14 earthquakes this year in Southern California with at least 4 or more earthquakes, seismologist Lucy Jones, a Caltech research associate, said earlier this month.
That broke the record of 65 years ago. During that time, Jones said, there was an average of eight to 10 earthquakes every year, including one magnitude 4 or larger earthquake.
In some years, there were only one or two such earthquake sequences; the previous highest was 13 in 1988.
What you’re seeing isn’t necessarily an indication that a large, devastating earthquake is imminent, scientists say.
Some researchers have given conflicting opinions – some say that seismic activity increases in an area before a major earthquake, others say that seismic activity decreases before a major earthquake.
So the latest activity gives no indication of when the next big, devastating earthquake will happen, said Susan Hough, a US Geological Survey seismologist, earlier this month.
Did you hear this earthquake? Think about it to report what you heard from the USGS.
Are you ready when the Big One arrives? Get ready for the next big earthquake by signing up for ours A storybook that can’t be movedwhich breaks down emergency preparedness into bite-sized steps over six weeks. Learn more about earthquake resources, what apps you need, Lucy Jones’ top advice and more latimes.com/Unshaken.
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