Two earthquakes — one 4.0 magnitude — rattle Southern California within 30 minutes

A 3.3 magnitude earthquake rattled the southern Los Angeles area early Monday morning, followed by a 4.0 magnitude quake less than half an hour later, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The 3.3 magnitude quake hit at 4:15 a.m. followed by a 4.0 magnitude earthquake at 4:44 a.m., both located near Inglewood and around a mile from Lennox, according to USGS. Thousands of people reporting feeling the 4.0 quake.

The epicenter of the larger earthquake was located south of West Century Boulevard near Hollywood Park Casino, USGS said.

Seismologist Lucy Jones wrote on Twitter that the earthquake “would have been felt by most people awake in L.A.” but said it was “very deep” at around 12 miles.

Magnitude refers to the the energy released at the source of the earthquake, the USGS said. It replaces the old Richter scale.

Earthquakes between 2.5 and 5.4 magnitude are usually felt but rarely cause a lot of damage, according to Michigan Tech.

People reacted to the quake on social media:

This story was originally published April 5, 2021 at 5:55 AM with the headline "Two earthquakes — one 4.0 magnitude — rattle Southern California within 30 minutes."