Earthquake Shakes Southern California from LA to San Diego, No Major Damage Reported
A 4.4 magnitude earthquake struck Southern California on Monday afternoon, shaking buildings and causing items to fall from shelves from Los Angeles to San Diego. Despite the widespread tremors, no significant damage or injuries were immediately reported.
The earthquake caused a water pipe to burst at the historic Pasadena City Hall, a 1927 landmark. Helicopter footage showed water spilling from the upper floors. In Los Angeles, the quake interrupted an ESPN interview, while the ground trembled in Anaheim, home to Disneyland in Orange County.
In the famous Laurel Canyon neighborhood of Los Angeles, known for its celebrity residents, dishes rattled, and social media posts showed shampoo bottles and other items scattered across the floor of a Target store.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the earthquake’s epicenter was near the Highland Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, about 6.5 miles (10.5 km) northeast of Los Angeles City Hall and 7.5 miles (12.1 km) deep. The quake was felt as far south as San Diego and east to Palm Springs, with a few reports even coming from the southern San Joaquin Valley, about 100 miles (160 km) northwest of LA.
Pasadena’s Public Information Officer, Lisa Derderian, confirmed that the water leak at City Hall was caused by the earthquake. Approximately 200 employees were safely evacuated from the building, and one person was rescued from an elevator.
Derderian reported no apparent damage to Pasadena’s century-old Rose Bowl, though a full assessment by an engineer will be conducted. There was also no immediate assessment of the city’s 1927 Central Library, which has been closed since 2021 for pending seismic retrofitting. “We haven’t gone inside to check it out yet,” she said.
Los Angeles Fire Department spokesperson Margaret Stewart stated that firefighters from all 106 stations surveyed the city’s 470 square miles (1,217 km²) and found no significant damage.
This earthquake serves as a reminder of the potential for more severe events in a state with a large population living atop active fault lines.
“Having lived through the 6.7 magnitude Northridge earthquake in 1994, today’s quake reminded me of the life-saving rules we know during an earthquake: drop, cover, and hold on,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger. “It’s also a reminder that we live in earthquake country and need to be prepared.”
The National Weather Service confirmed there was no tsunami threat, and the USGS revised its initial estimate of the earthquake’s magnitude from 4.6 to 4.4.
Richard Egan, who was having lunch with colleagues on the second floor of an office building near Long Beach Airport, about 20 miles (32.2 km) south of the epicenter, described the moment as eerily quiet. “We waited for a bigger quake to follow,” he said, estimating the shaking lasted about 45 seconds. Having experienced many earthquakes during his 59 years in Southern California, Egan rated this one as moderate.
The earthquake occurred on the first day of the new school year for 540,000 students in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Several schools felt the tremor, and at least one high school, John Marshall in Los Feliz, notified parents that they had evacuated buildings to check for damage, but no immediate damage was found.
“We have not received reports of any injuries or significant damage to our facilities,” LAUSD Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho said in a social media post.
This earthquake comes less than a week after a 5.2 magnitude quake hit Southern California, also widely felt in Los Angeles. That quake, too, caused no injuries or significant damage.
