Earthquakes Los Angeles

A magnitude 4.8 earthquake centered in the San Bernardino Mountains seven miles northwest of San Gorgonio peak shook much of urban Southern California at 6:34 a.m. Sunday, seismologists reported. No damage and no injuries were reported in the temblor, which was a new quake and not an aftershock of the 1992 Landers-Big Bear quakes, said Lucy Jones of the U.S. Geological Survey. The quake was strongly felt at the many summer camps in the Barton Flats area, about 20 miles east of San Bernardino.

Two small earthquakes rattled portions of California on Wednesday: a magnitude 4.1 tremor in a remote desert section of Inyo County 40 miles northeast of Lone Pine and a 3.3 aftershock of the 1994 Northridge quake centered a mile northeast of San Fernando. The U.S. Geological Survey reported that the Inyo County quake occurred at 8:50 a.m., while the San Fernando Valley aftershock took place at 1:46 p.m. Neither caused any reported damage or injuries.

The strongest aftershock this year of the 1994 Northridge quake, a 3.9, rattled built-up areas of the northwest San Fernando Valley at 11:51 a.m. Wednesday. Caltech seismologists said the epicenter of the quake--and that of a magnitude 3.1 foreshock 22 seconds earlier--was two miles north-northeast of Chatsworth at a depth of 3.5 miles. The quake was felt lightly through much of the Valley and weakly in Santa Monica and northward along the coast.

The strongest aftershock of the 1994 Northridge quake to strike this year--a magnitude 3.9 temblor--rattled built-up areas of the northwest San Fernando Valley at 11:51 a.m. Wednesday, but there were no reports of injury or substantial damage. Caltech seismologists said the epicenter of the quake--and that of a magnitude 3.1 foreshock 22 seconds earlier--was two miles north-northeast of Chatsworth at a depth of 3.5 miles.

Two border collies and a tale about how they survived the 1994 Northridge earthquake kept the children at Christian Nursery School spellbound Monday. The story of Sammy and Rosie's reactions during the devastating temblor was told by their master, Trisha Pfeiffer of Valley Village. Pfeiffer, author of a short story called "Sammy and Rosie in the Land of Rock 'N Roll," said the reading was intended to help educate the youngsters about earthquake preparedness.

Thousands of State Farm Insurance Co. policyholders allegedly misled by the insurance giant would have a difficult time successfully suing despite a $100-million secret settlement involving 117 families whose earthquake coverage was unfairly reduced before the 1994 Northridge temblor, plaintiffs' lawyers said Thursday. There may be 25,000 other policyholders whose insurance coverage was similarly reduced, lawyers said.

Thousands of State Farm Insurance Co. policyholders allegedly misled by the insurance giant would have a difficult time successfully suing despite a $100-million secret settlement involving 117 families whose earthquake coverage was unfairly reduced before the 1994 Northridge earthquake, plaintiffs' lawyers said Thursday. There may be 25,000 other policyholders whose insurance coverage was similarly reduced, lawyers said.

The earthquake-damaged Los Encinos State Historic Park will serve as a venue for family fun Sunday while raising money to repair and restore its buildings, the oldest of which dates back to the 1850s. Hosted by the Encino Chamber of Commerce and to be held at the 5-acre park, the picnic will feature tours of the facility, lectures on the park's historic significance, folk dances, sack races and other activities. Volunteers from the Los Encinos Docents Assn.

The closure of a North Hollywood hospital and possible shutdown of a second medical center nearby will lengthen ambulance rides by at least three to five minutes for some patients and increase pressure on emergency rooms at other hospitals in the Valley, county emergency officials said Friday. The prediction comes a day after North Hollywood Medical Center announced it would shut its doors in August, closing an emergency room that currently handles about 450 ambulance patients every month.

An aftershock to the 1994 Northridge earthquake shook the San Fernando Valley late Tuesday, but there were no immediate reports of injury or damage. The quake had a preliminary magnitude of 3.0 and struck at 10:22 p.m., two miles southeast of Encino, U.S. Geological Survey seismologist Jim Mori said. The tremor was one of thousands of aftershocks to the 6.7-magnitude Northridge quake of Jan. 17, 1994, that killed 72 people and caused more than $40 billion in damage.