3.3 Quake North of Inglewood Shakes Wide Swath of Westside

Normally, a magnitude 3.3 earthquake gets little attention in Southern California. Last year, according to Lisa Wald of the U.S. Geological Survey, there were 77 quakes in the region that big or bigger.

But on Friday at 1:26 a.m., a 3.3 temblor hit one mile north of Inglewood, and it seemed to make quite an impact. Residents over a wide swath of the Westside were awakened and a few windows were broken, as were some bottles and other items.

The temblor was also felt in downtown Los Angeles, six miles to the northeast.

Scientists said the quake was felt more than most its size because it was shallow, centered only a mile or two miles underground.

Also, it occurred in an area where the soils are weak, not very far from where the Santa Monica Freeway collapsed in the 1994 Northridge quake.