7.2 Baja California Quake Could Have Been Worse
A man walks near his house early Monday, April 5, 2010, after a powerful earthquake hit Mexicali, Mexico Sunday. The earthquake swayed buildings from Los Angeles to Tijuana. (AP Photo/Guillermo Arias)
A strong 7.2-magnitude earthquake rocked Mexico, California and Arizona yesterday afternoon, killing at least two and injuring 100 in Mexico.
The quake, centered 38 miles south-southeast of Mexicali, state capital of Baja California, Mexico, struck around 3:40 p.m., local time on Sunday.
Mexicali was the hardest-hit major population center, with several buildings crumbling and widespread power outages reported. Fortunately, however, the quake epicenter and the most severe shaking was in an area of minimal settlement southwest of the towns and irrigated croplands of northern Baja California and nearby Imperial Valley, California.
Earthquake rupture was apparently along the Laguna Salada Fault, which strikes southeastward in Mexico from the California border southwest of Mexicali. The Laguna Salada Fault is only one of many individual faults that make up the southern San Andreas Fault System.
People felt the effects of the quake from Los Angeles to San Diego, and throughout Southern California and Arizona.
The quake, centered 38 miles south-southeast of Mexicali, state capital of Baja California, Mexico, struck around 3:40 p.m., local time on Sunday. Image courtesy of Google Maps.
Disneyland rides were closed and several hotels evacuated after the 40-second quake.
Southern California and areas farther south through Baja California, Mexico, will have sunshine today with highs in the 60s at the coast, but warmer 70s to lower 80s in the desert near the epicenter. Light winds will predominate.
The rest of the week will be warmer still, with temperatures reaching the 70s in the coastal cities and 80s to about 90F inland. Odds for any rain will be minimal through Sunday.
The last time an earthquake of this magnitude struck the Southern California and Baja California region was in 1992, when a 7.3 quake shook Landers, California, in the Mojave Desert.
Image courtesy of USGS.
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