More than 600 small earthquakes have been recorded this weekend in a rural area near the Salton Sea in Southern California, with the largest having a magnitude of 5.3.
Geophysicist Randy Baldwin said 603 temblors with a magnitude of at least 1 happened in the area from Saturday to just before sunrise Sunday.
The quakes were centered near Calipatria, along the San Andreas Fault and about 30 miles north of the Mexican border, the USGS map shows.
The area is not heavily populated and has been known to have “swarms in the past,” USGS seismologist Paul Caruso
Four of the quakes measured greater than magnitude 4, and 29 were greater than magnitude 3, Baldwin said.
Elsewhere, two 5.9 magnitude earthquakes struck in the Pacific Ocean around 89 and 98 miles west of the coastal town of Gold Beach, Oregon, after 1 a.m. PT Friday, the USGS reported.
At least four earthquakes ranging in magnitudes from 3.9 to 5.9 occurred in that area in the previous few hours, according to USGS.
USGS says the earthquake occurred about 7 mi west of Calipatria, California, which is located in Imperial County. Seismologist, Lucy Jones said on Twitter earthquakes in this region usually come in swarms. Jones said the Westmoreland fault likely won’t trigger anything above a 5.8 quake. She warned as long as the fault stays active, swarms are bound to continue.
The Imperial County Fire Department and Office of Emergency Services tweeted they are monitoring the earthquake activity but there are no reports of damages or injuries.
The area is not heavily populated and has been known to have swarms of small earthquakes in the past.
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