California has been struck by 13 earthquakes in just 25 minutes overnight, with the first striking just after midnight, the National Weather Service (NWS) has confirmed.
The US authorities said the first quake struck on Monday, hitting northwest of El Centro – a city in the southern border region. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) said the quake recorded a 4.8 magnitude and reportedly shook much of San Diego County.
The area was hit with a 4.5 aftershock just six minutes later, which was then followed by a series of smaller aftershocks, originating west of the Salton Sea, the USGS said.
The quakes appear to have been caused by the San Jacinto fault system, meteorologists have said. It is one of the most active faults in southern California.
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The first quake struck at 12.36am on Monday. The epicenter of the main shock was 11.7 miles deep, the USGS revealed. The quake, which was followed by twelve other quakes, triggered a USGS shake alert.