Swarm of small earthquakes under Salton Sea, California

The U.S. Geological Survey has registered 11 earthquakes under the Salton Sea in California’s Imperial County (near San Diego) on September 26, 2016.

The largest was a shallow M4.3 at 14:31 UTC. It hit 6 km (3.7 miles) SSE of Bombay Beach, 19 km (11.8 miles) WNW of Niland and 23 km (14.3 miles) E of Salton City at a depth of 2.4 km (1.5 miles).

According to responses posted to the USGS website, the quake was felt as far away as Carmel Mountain Ranch and Scripps Ranch.

There were no reports of serious damage.

USGS issued a green alert for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses. There is a low likelihood of casualties and damage.

Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are highly resistant to earthquake shaking, though some vulnerable structures exist.

Recent earthquakes in this area have caused secondary hazards such as landslides and liquefaction that might have contributed to losses.

Estimated population exposure to earthquake shaking

*Estimated exposure only includes population within map area (k = x1,000)
Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) scale

Selected cities exposed

From GeoNames Database of Cities with 1 000 or more residents (k = x 1 000)

Earthquake list

Between 11:38 and 15:48 UTC, the USGS registered a total of 11 earthquakes in this area. There were 12 earthquakes there within the last 30 days.

Credit: USGS

Featured image credit: USGS

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