Seismologist Warns 'More Earthquakes' Coming To SoCal

PASADENA (CBSLA.com) — A pair of minor earthquakes that rattled the Westside over the weekend are more common than one may think,  but that doesn't mean residents shouldn't be prepared, a seismologist said Monday

The two quakes were both centered about two miles north of El Segundo, with one on Friday registering magnitude-3.2 and a second, less powerful magnitude-2.8 temblor striking the area on Sunday.

No injuries or damages were reported after either incident.

Dr. Lucy Jones of Cal Tech and the U.S. Geological Survey told KNX 1070 NEWSRADIO these types of swarms are not exactly a rare occurrence.

"A magnitude-3 happens somewhere in Southern California a couple times a week," Jones said. "This one just happened to be near a lot of people 'cause it was near LAX."

According to Jones, the Los Angeles basin had experienced multiple magnitude-3 quakes and at least one damaging earthquake every year for seven years before the catastrophic 1994 quake in Northridge.

However, Jones did caution that the recent absence of a major quake in the Southland does raise some concerns.

"We do need to remember that the last 20 years has been a particularly quiet time in the history of Southern California," she said. "The present quiet is not the long-term normal, and people do need to know that a some point, we're going to be having more earthquakes than we've had recently."

A USGS event map shows Friday's quake was felt as far north as La Cañada Flintridge and as far south as Huntington Beach.