Millions of people across a wide area of Southern California got a scary wakeup jolt Wednesday morning when a 4.5-magnitude earthquake struck near Banning in Riverside County.
The temblor was felt throughout much of Southern California, including Orange County, the Coachella Valley and even parts of San Diego and Los Angeles counties.
There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage, but a lot of people were awakened early by the shaking.
The U.S. Geological Survey reported the quake hit about 2 miles northwest of Banning at 6:42 a.m. It was in the Banning Fault area of the San Andreas Fault Zone and relatively shallow at a depth of about one mile.
The temblor was felt as far away as Newport Beach and Laguna Niguel, according to the USGS “Did You Feel It” page. Palm Springs and other Coachella Valley cities experienced it as a rolling motion that may have lasted about 20 seconds, according to one resident.
Officials originally said the temblor was measured at 4.8, but after additional calculations determined the magnitude to be 4.5. It occurred near the San Bernardino County line, and early reports placed the quake in that county.
— MyNewsLA.com staff and wire reports