Hi All. There is a good chance that the M>5.3 quake is a foreshock to a much larger quake. The quake appears to be centered on the San Andreas Fault or one of its segments.

The southern segment (Coachella Valley) of the San Andreas Fault has long been called the most dangerous fault in southern California for a major quake. In as much as the last major earthquake on this segment (Coachella Valley) was over 190 years ago, the fault may be late in its earthquake cycle, and thus the calculated ongoing stress increase on the fault is of added significance. The longer it goes without a major the larger the next quake will be.

This segment (Coachella Valley) starts at the Salton Sea and ends near San Bernardino. The 1857 rupture started near Cholame and ended near San Bernardino. That leaves the southern segment (Coachella Valley) of the San Andreas Fault as the only segment not to have had a recorded major quake center on it since 1857.

As usual I’m going to lean back, put my heels up and wait and see what happens next. Don in creepy town