Magnitude 5.4 Aftershock Rattles Southern California

LOS ANGELES, CA — A large aftershock struck in Ridgecrest early Friday morning, prompting Los Angeles firefighters to hit the streets to survey for damage caused by the magnitude 5.4 aftershock. It was the largest of more than 200 noteworthy after shocks to hit the region in less than 24 hours.

The quake struck at 4:07 a.m. and is considered an aftershock to the magnitude 6.4 quake that rattled the region on the Fourth of July. Friday's large aftershock was epicentered 9.7 miles west of Searles Valley a a depth of about 4.3 miles, according to a computer-generated report from the U.S. Geological Survey. Since Thursday morning, more than 200 quakes of 2.5 magnitude shook the Searles Valley. The shaking has been near constant with dozens of quakes being a magnitude 3.0 or larger.

RELATED: 6.4 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Southern California

Several temblors greater than 3 magnitude hit the same region earlier Friday morning.

At 5:38 a.m., a 4.1-magnitude aftershock struck, again at a depth of 4.3 miles, 9.4 miles West of Searles Valley, according to a computer- generated USGS report. It was followed 17 minutes later by a 3.7-magnitude temblor that hit at a depth of 3.7 miles.

Following the quake, which was felt in parts of Los Angeles although not as widely as Thursday's quake, firefighters from all 106 Los Angeles Fire Department stations began surveying their districts for damage, LAFD spokeswoman Margaret Stewart said. No damage was found, and the LAFD resumed normal operations, she said.

City News Service and Patch Staffer contributed to this report.