1933 Long Beach, CA — M6.4

A recent study used modern methods to explore how the Newport-Inglewood fault ruptured in the 1933 Long Beach earthquake, which occurred at 5:54 local time on March 10, 1933. Although recorded seismometer data from this early earthquake are very limited, scientists can use sophisticated computer models to predict how seismic waves were generated along the fault as it broke, and how those waves would have traveled through the complex three-dimensional sub-surface geology in the greater Los Angeles region. This animation shows predictions that were developed to explain the observed pattern of damage, which included heavy damage in the city of Long Beach, as well as in Compton. Of note, the animation shows how energy is predicted to have been focused towards the city of Long Beach and channeled into the central Los Angeles region as the rupture propagated northward along the Newport-Inglewood fault.