Yellowstone National Park hit by 4.8-magnitude earthquake after California is shaken by major tremor

  • Occurred about 6.30am this morning, four miles north-northeast of the Norris Geyser Basin in Montana
  • Observers were concerned the quake would cause supervolcano Yellowstone Caldera to erupt
  • No injuries or significant damage reported
  • California was hit by a 5.1-magnitude quake on Friday, with residents warned an even bigger one could follow
  • It rattled a wide swathe of Southern California, breaking water mains in a nearby community and prompting Disneyland to shut down rides
  • Friday's tremor was the second sizeable tremor in two weeks, following a 4.4 quake on March 17

By Associated Press Reporter

PUBLISHED: 15:16 EST, 30 March 2014 | UPDATED: 16:09 EST, 30 March 2014

A magnitude 4.8 earthquake shook the northern stretches of Yellowstone National Park early this morning, rattling observers of one of the world's most dangerous supervolcanoes.

The quake struck near the Wyoming-Montana border about 6.30am, in the north-northeast parts of America's most famous park.

Although the tremor was the most powerful to hit the area in nearly 30 years, U.S. Geological Survey’s Yellowstone Volcano Observatory spokesman Peter Cervelli said it was not expected to cause the Yellowstone Caldera to erupt.

Nature's alarm: Residents in Mammoth in Yellowstone National Park woke to several inches of fresh snow and a magnitude 4.8 earthquake this morning

Nature's alarm: Residents in Mammoth in Yellowstone National Park woke to several inches of fresh snow and a magnitude 4.8 earthquake this morning

Scene: Several smaller quakes, ranging from 2.5 to 3.1, were also reported in Yellowstone National Park (pictured)

Scene: Several smaller quakes, ranging from 2.5 to 3.1, were also reported in Yellowstone National Park (pictured)

Late last year, a study into the super volcano found the underground magma chamber to be 2.5 times larger than previously thought, with the cavern spanning a 90km by 30km area and capable of holding tons of molten rock.

If the volcano were ever to erupt, observers say the outflow of lava, ash and smoke would likely devastate the United States and affect the entire world.

Cervelli said today's quake, four miles north-northeast of the Norris Geyser Basin, may have caused only minor damage and that there wouldn't be many people at the park at the moment.

 

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The University of Utah Seismograph Stations reported the quake was felt in the Montana border towns of West Yellowstone and Gardiner, both about 20 miles from the epicenter.

Several smaller quakes, ranging from 2.5 to 3.1, were also reported in the region this morning.

Yellowstone sees frequent small earthquakes. Since Thursday, there have been at least 25 recorded in the nation's first national park.

Impact: California was hit by a 5.1-magnitude earthquake on Friday, two days before a 4.8-magnitude quake rocked Yellowstone National Park in Montana

Impact: California was hit by a 5.1-magnitude earthquake on Friday, two days before a 4.8-magnitude quake rocked Yellowstone National Park in Montana

Meanwhile in California, experts say a bigger earthquake along the lesser-known fault that gave Southern California a moderate shake could do more damage to the region than the long-dreaded 'Big One' from the more famous San Andreas Fault.

The Puente Hills thrust fault, which brought Friday night's magnitude-5.1 quake centered in La Habra and well over 100 aftershocks by today, stretches from northern Orange County under downtown Los Angeles into Hollywood - a heavily populated swath of the Los Angeles area.

A magnitude-7.5 earthquake along that fault could prove more catastrophic than one along the San Andreas, which runs along the outskirts of metropolitan Southern California, seismologists told the Los Angeles Times.

The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that such a quake along the Puente Hills fault could kill 3,000 to 18,000 people and cause up to $250 billion in damage.

In contrast, a larger magnitude 8 quake along the San Andreas would cause an estimated 1,800 deaths.

Rocked: Customers flee Disneyland as the park is shut down following a 5.1 earthquake in L.A. on Friday

Rocked: Customers flee Disneyland as the park is shut down following a 5.1 earthquake in L.A. on Friday

Destruction: The force of the quake caused this brick wall in Fullerton, California to collapse on Friday

Destruction: The force of the quake caused this brick wall in Fullerton, California to collapse on Friday

In 1987, the fault caused the Whittier Narrows earthquake. Still considered moderate at magnitude 5.9, that quake killed eight people and did more than $350 million in damage.

Part of the problem with the potential damage is that the fault runs near so many vulnerable older buildings, many made of concrete, in downtown Los Angeles and Hollywood. And because the fault, discovered in 1999, is horizontal, heavy reverberations are likely to be felt over a wide area.

The shaking from a 7.5 quake in the center of urban Los Angeles could be so intense it would lift heavy objects in the air, like the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake in Northern California, where the shaking was so bad 'we found an upside-down grand piano', USGS seismologist Lucy Jones told the Times.

That would 'hit all of downtown,' Jones said. 'And everywhere from La Habra to Hollywood.'

Wreckage: Items in shops in parts of California toppled from shelves following Friday's magnitude 5.1 earthquake

Wreckage: Items in shops in parts of California toppled from shelves following Friday's magnitude 5.1 earthquake

Impact: While no injuries were reported in Fullerton, California, people's belongings were smashed in some homes

Impact: While no injuries were reported in Fullerton, California, people's belongings were smashed in some homes

About 150 aftershocks, including one of magnitude-4.1, were felt since Friday night's quake, which forced several dozen people in the Orange County city of Fullerton out of their homes after firefighters discovered foundation problems that made the buildings unsafe to enter, authorities said.

Fire crews red-tagged 20 apartment units after finding a major foundation crack. Structural woes, including broken chimneys and leaning, were uncovered in half a dozen single-family houses, which were also deemed unsafe to occupy until building inspectors clear the structures. Seventy residents remained displaced, down from 83 after the initial quake.

Another 14 residential structures around the city suffered lesser damage, including collapsed fireplaces.

A water-main break flooded several floors of Brea City Hall, and the shaking knocked down computers and ceiling tiles, Stokes said.

It was not immediately clear if City Hall would reopen Monday. An email to the mayor was not immediately returned.

Off road: In Brea, the earthquake triggered a landslide that left this car upside down, with only minor injuries reported

Off road: In Brea, the earthquake triggered a landslide that left this car upside down, with only minor injuries reported

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It was the earthquake in Los Angeles 'fault'...it caused it! Further research shows that earthquakes from great distances do reach and have effects upon the activities at Yellowstone, such as the 1992 7.3 magnitude Landers earthquake in California¿s Mojave Desert that triggered a swarm of quakes from more than 800 miles (1,300 km) away and the 2002 7.9 magnitude Denali fault earthquake 2,000 miles (3,200 km) away in Alaska that altered the activity of many geysers and hot springs for several months afterward.

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When I looked at the USGS web site (which is fascinating, by the way), I was surprised to see how many small earthquakes occur in Oklahoma.

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Please don't describe a 5.1 shaker as "a major earthquake". It isn't. Not even close. Anything under a 6 is basically not going to impact your day in any significant way beyond perhaps having to clean up some fallen and broken items.

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I agree that 5.1 isn't "major", but the USGS considers it "significant". Some homes and businesses sustained damage.

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The obama administration has just renamed the cause of the quake to "Bush's Fault"

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To be more specific, global warming due the Bush administration...

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What is US Congresswoman Michele Bachmann saying? Doesn't she like to blame these on God's disapproval of America?

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God's disapproval of those Idiot Liberals is more than enough to bring bad things upon the USA.....lol

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just the other day, scientists said the volcano was dead! now, they're saying it might erupt? and i'm supposed to believe in climate change?

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Wow.

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Ahh, ahem, ... huh?

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Go to the USGS website and you can see all sorts of earthquakes have occurred in the last week. But then, you could go there a month from now and see the same thing.

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Oh $hi# the Big one is coming in Yellowstone super Volcano, as well as on the west cost. Have you got your "bug out bag" ready? I just love that show!

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As Mickey Newbury will tell you, when the 'Big One' comes, the world will be destroyed ----- and California left. RIP Mickey, America's greatest singer/songwriter bar none.

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Soon, earthquakes will be defined as being caused by climate change, too.

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Earthquakes will be classified as a form of autism.

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