Magnitude 4.1 earthquake rattles Los Angeles County
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck Sunday roughly 7 miles southwest of Westlake Village in Los Angeles County, California, the United States Geological Survey said.
Several aftershocks were felt in Malibu, USGS data shows.
The quake struck at a depth of about 7 miles, according to the USGS. Earthquakes with a magnitude ranging from 2.5 to 5.4 are often felt, but only result in minor damage, according to Michigan Technological University.
This story has been updated with additional information.
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4.1-magnitude earthquake jolts Los Angeles area
KTLA
by: Will Conybeare
Posted: Mar 9, 2025 / 01:09 PM PDT
Updated: Mar 9, 2025 / 01:42 PM PDT
An earthquake with a magnitude of 4.1 rattled the Los Angeles area early Sunday afternoon.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the quake struck at 1:03 p.m. The epicenter was 11 kilometers (6.8 miles) southwest of Westlake Village, at a depth of 11.7 kilometers (about 7.2 miles).
Three other smaller quakes were detected near Malibu in the three minutes following the first one; they had magnitudes of 2.5, 3.0 and 2.8.
“The magnitude 4.1 was widely felt in the L.A. region,” USGS said on X.
There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
This is a developing story. Stay with KTLA 5 News for updates.
Thousands of earthquakes are recorded in California annually, but the vast majority are incredibly minor. Several hundred reach a magnitude of 3.0, and only about 15 to 20 reach a magnitude of 4.0 or greater, according to the USGS.
In North America, only Alaska records more quakes per year than California.
What to do in an earthquake
During an earthquake, knowing the proper steps to protect yourself and minimize injury is crucial. The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) provides detailed guidelines on what to do during such events. Here are the key points:
Drop, Cover, and Hold On:
Drop: Immediately drop down onto your hands and knees. This position prevents you from being knocked over and allows you to stay low and crawl to safety if necessary.
Cover: Use one arm to protect your head and neck, and if possible, take shelter under a sturdy table or desk. If no shelter is available, get down next to an interior wall away from windows. Stay on your knees and bend over to protect vital organs.
Hold On: Hold on to your shelter until the shaking stops. Be prepared to move with your shelter if it shifts.
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4.1 earthquake felt across Southern California, centered near Malibu
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake centered north of Malibu sent light and weak shaking across Southern California on Sunday.
The strongest shaking was felt in parts of Malibu, Agoura Hills, Thousand Oaks and Camarillo, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The strongest shaking was considered “light” as defined by the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale — enough to rattle dishes and windows and feel like a truck has struck a building.
Weak shaking may have been felt across a wider swath of the Southland, including downtown Los Angeles, Long Beach, the San Gabriel Valley, the Santa Clarita Valley, Simi Valley, Oxnard and Ventura.
The earthquake hit on Sunday at 1:03 p.m. It was followed by a magnitude 2.5 earthquake a minute later, and magnitude 3 and magnitude 2.8 aftershocks at 1:07 p.m.
There were no immediate reports of damage.
According to the USGS. the light quake was felt across the region, from Goleta south to Huntington Beach.
The epicenter was in the Santa Monica Mountains, about 3 miles northwest of El Matador State Beach and 3.5 miles northeast of Leo Carrillo State Beach. The epicenter was 7 miles southwest of Thousand Oaks and Westlake Village.
In Westlake Village, people felt a roll and shake over about five seconds. Residents in Reseda felt a steady shake. In Redondo Beach, the shaking felt like a long rumble; in Windsor Hills, the quake felt like a long, slow roll. Someone in Torrance felt two jolts, and near Los Angeles International Airport, the earthquake felt like a brief sway.
One person in downtown L.A. described a long but gentle shake.
An official at L.A. County Fire Station 88 on Malibu Road said no reports of damage had come in, adding “the guys here didn’t even feel it.” An official at Fire Station 99 on Pacific Coast Highway said it was felt but the station got no reports about damage.
Southern California has been experiencing a number of moderate earthquakes since 2024. For all of 2024, Southern California had experienced 15 seismic sequences with at least one magnitude 4 or higher earthquake, according to the count of seismologist Lucy Jones, a Caltech research associate. That’s the highest annual total in the last 65 years, surpassing the 13 seen in 1988.
Sunday’s earthquake was the first magnitude 4 earthquake for Southern California so far in 2025, Jones said Sunday.
Experts have cautioned for months that the latest quakes don’t provide any additional clarity on the timing of Southern California’s next devastating earthquake.“Seismologists have spent decades trying to read the tea leaves to look for patterns. The seismic network was installed in Southern California 100 years ago because scientists thought that small earthquakes would show patterns before the big earthquakes happened. And that just didn’t work out,” Susan Hough, seismologist for the U.S. Geological Survey, said a few months ago.
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Rong-Gong Lin II is a Metro reporter based in San Francisco who specializes in covering statewide earthquake safety issues and the COVID-19 pandemic. The Bay Area native is a graduate of UC Berkeley and started at the Los Angeles Times in 2004.
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