An earthquake registering a magnitude of 4.7 struck near Malibu just before 7:30 a.m. Thursday.
The quake, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, was centered about 7 kilometers — approximately 4 miles — in the Santa Monica Mountains north of Malibu, at 7:28 a.m.
The quake was felt in areas throughout the Santa Clarita Valley, but there were no immediate reports of damage.
California’s first-in-the-nation Earthquake Early Warning System provided advance notification of the quake to millions of Californians in Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties, according to a news release from the office of Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES), which oversees California’s earthquake warning system, reported that phones in the affected areas received notifications from the state’s MyShake app, which sent 425,217 alerts.
Cal OES estimates that millions more received wireless emergency alerts as a result of the public-private partnership between the state and Google, which has integrated the alert software into its Android cell phone operating systems.
Following the earthquake, there were more than 20,000 new downloads of the MyShake App in just three hours, the news release said.
In addition to the emergency alerts sent to individuals through MyShake and smartphones, California is also using the technology to automate protective actions such as opening firehouse doors, recalling elevators, shutting off water and gas valves as well as closing gates on bridges and notifying personnel in school and medical settings, the release said.
“All Californians should download the MyShake app on their mobile phones to help them prepare for earthquakes,” Cal OES Director Nancy Ward said in the release. “With these notices, people can take life-saving steps before shaking begins.”
In 2019, on the 30th anniversary of the deadly Loma Prieta earthquake, Newsom announced the launch of the nation’s first statewide Earthquake Early Warning System.
Warnings delivered through the California Earthquake Early Warning System are powered by ShakeAlert, a computerized program operated by the United States Geological Survey in partnership with Cal OES that analyzes data from seismic networks in California, calculates preliminary magnitudes, and then estimates which areas will feel shaking.
Seismic networks partners include the California Geological Survey, University of California, Berkeley Seismological Laboratory and California Institute of Technology Seismological Laboratory.
The California Earthquake Early Warning System marries a smartphone application with traditional alert and warning delivery methods such as Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA). With the recent integration of early warning technology within the most popular smartphones in California, the system can deliver alerts to most Californians. The system uses ground motion sensors from across the state to detect earthquakes before humans can feel them.
How to receive alerts
To receive earthquake warnings, there are three ways for individuals and families to get alerts through the Earthquake Warning California system, the release said:
• MyShake App: Free smartphone app that provides iPhone users with audio and visual warnings, available in both English and Spanish.
• Smartphones: The majority of smartphones with updated operating systems are automatically subscribed to earthquake early warning which uses the same technology as the MyShake App.
• Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEAs): No-cost text messages for emergency situations sent through the nationwide system providing lifesaving information for the state of California
To learn more about earthquake preparedness and download the earthquake early warning application, visit: www.earthquake.ca.gov.
