New Los Angeles Earthquake On Same Fault Could Be Deadlier Than 'Big One'

• Seismologists warn of danger of Puente Hills thrust fault
• 4.8 earthquake hits Yellowstone National Park

Associated Press in Los Angeles
theguardian.com, Sunday 30 March 2014 15.11 EDT

Experts say a bigger earthquake along the same lesser-known fault that produced the 5.1-magnitude tremor that hit Los Angeles on Friday night could do more damage to the region than the long-dreaded “Big One” from the more famous San Andreas fault.

The warning came as a 4.8 earthquake shook the northern part of Yellowstone National Park early on Sunday. The University of Utah Seismograph Stations reported that the Yellowstone earthquake occurred at 6.34am about four miles north-north-east of the Norris geyser basin. The university reports it was felt in the Montana border towns of West Yellowstone and Gardiner, both about 20 miles from the epicentre.

--CLIP
In California, the Puente Hills thrust fault, which brought Friday night's quake centred in La Habra and more than 100 aftershocks by Sunday, stretches from northern Orange County under downtown Los Angeles into Hollywood – a heavily populated swath of the Los Angeles area.

A 7.5-magnitude earthquake along that fault could prove more catastrophic than one along the San Andreas, which runs along the outskirts of metropolitan southern California, seismologists told the Los Angeles Times.

The US Geological Survey estimates that such a quake along the Puente Hills fault could kill 3,000 to 18,000 people and cause up to $250bn (£150bn) in damage. In contrast, a larger magnitude 8 quake along the San Andreas would cause an estimated 1,800 deaths. In 1987, the fault caused the Whittier Narrows earthquake. Still considered moderate at magnitude 5.9, that quake killed eight people and did more than $350m in damage.

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http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/mar/30/los-angeles-earthquake-fault-deadlier-than-big-one