5.1 Aftershock Hits Area Around Hector Mine Quake
A magnitude 5.1 aftershock of last week’s 7.1 Hector Mine earthquake shook a wide area of Southern California Friday.
The 9:08 a.m. quake was centered in the Mojave Desert less than 10 miles west of Ludlow, a remote community on Interstate 40. It was felt in the Los Angeles area 120 miles away.
It was the seventh aftershock between 5.0 and 5.8 since last Saturday’s main shock. Seismologists had said a 7.1 would generate that many aftershocks of 5.0 or greater within a week.
Nearly 2,000 aftershocks of varying magnitudes have occurred since the Hector Mine quake, named after a mine 15 miles west of Ludlow.
A 4.3 aftershock struck north of Joshua Tree at 5:40 a.m. and there were two 4.0 tremors Thursday night--for a total of 37 in the 4.0-4.9 range.
Thousands of aftershocks after a strong quake are expected. Aftershocks are still occurring from the magnitude 7.3 Landers quake of 1992.
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