Nearly A Dozen Aftershocks Of Magnitude 3 Or Higher Hit Ridgecrest Overnight

RIDGECREST (CBSLA) — The earth continues to tremble in Ridgecrest, where recovery efforts are underway after being hard-hit by two large earthquakes over the Fourth of July holiday weekend.

As many as 11 small earthquakes, each one more than 3 in magnitude, struck the Ridgecrest area overnight, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The earthquakes struck between nine and 36 miles from Ridgecrest in Kern County from 11:18 p.m. Sunday and 1:19 a.m. Monday.

The strongest, a magnitude-3.7 temblor, struck at 1:20 a.m. All the temblors were aftershocks to Friday's 7.1 earthquake, which was preceded by magnitude-6.4 quake on the morning of the Fourth of July.

Both earthquakes were felt widely throughout Southern California. At the epicenter, the Kern County city of Ridgecrest and the San Bernardino County city of Trona suffered the most damage.

COMPLETE COVERAGE: Ridgecrest Earthquakes

Remote roads were left visibly cracked, store ceilings collapsed, and house fires erupted in surrounding communities immediately after the earthquakes. Damage caused by the earthquakes was estimated at $1 billion, according to the USGS.

LA County Fire's Urban Search and Rescue Team 136 and Hazardous Materials Team 811, plus 12 highly trained firefighters, have been sent out to help with recovery in Ridgecrest. The Los Angeles Fire Department also deployed a heavily equipped Los Angeles Fire Department Urban Search and Rescue Team.