California rocked by 5.3 magnitude earthquake with locals stunned by ‘shake alert’ sent seconds before tremors felt

A 5.3 MAGNITUDE earthquake rocked California on Tuesday night, with residents stunned by the speed at which they were warned.

The earthquake , which was initially logged by the USGS as being 5.7 in magnitude, struck Bakersfield, CA, at around 9:09 pm.

USGS

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The quake sent shockwaves across Southern California, with residents in Hollywood , Santa Monica, Woodland Hills, and Camarillo, among those who felt the tremor.

An alert quickly warned locals to “drop, cover, hold on. Protect Yourself.”

It was sent so quickly that locals received had time to take cover before feeling the shakes.

“Wow!!! Just had an #Earthquake here in Los Angeles and actually got a warning about it about 10 seconds before it happened on my phone,” wrote one resident on X .

“Never got that kind of alert before!”

Another said, “Got a Google alert about the #earthquake a few seconds before the tremors began.”

A third wrote, “Oh my god the alert actually worked. That was no joke.”

At least 31 aftershocks ranging between 2.5 and 4.1 were later felt nearby, according to Caltech’s Seismological Laboratory.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or damages, however, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department .

“An update will be provided once LAFD Earthquake Mode is complete,” the statement read, as it stated the process would take about an hour or less.

NWS Tsunami Alerts reported via X that a tsunami is “not expected” to hit Bakersfield.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass released a statement following the earthquake, saying city teams will “continue to monitor any impacts.”

“A preliminary magnitude 5.3 earthquake near Mettler, CA was felt in the Los Angeles region this evening,” Bass wrote .

“Our @LAFD has activated to conduct its routine survey of the city and assess for any damages.

“City teams will continue to monitor any impacts.”

The 5.3 magnitude comes after Southern California was hit with a 4.9 magnitude earthquake just last week.

At around 1 pm on July 29, locals felt quakes as far as Los Angeles and Las Vegas .

Almost immediately, people took to social media to share that they’d felt the afternoon earthquake.

“Felt it here in Vegas,” one user posted to X.

“Same, east Hollywood,” another said.

There were no immediate reports of major damage from the shocks, which measured around 4.89 miles deep, according to the Southern California Earthquake Data Center .

What causes earthquakes?

Here's everything you need to know...

• An earthquake is a shockwave caused by rocks being under extreme forces
• They are typically triggered by the movement of Earth’s crust
• Earth’s tectonic plates, the massive shelves of crust that carry the continents and seafloor, meet at points called fault lines
• When these plates rub over or against one another, huge amounts of pressure are generated
• This creates shockwaves that send violent vibrations through Earth
• The shock can split the planet’s crust and create devestating tsunamis

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