4.1-magnitude quake gives Southern California a jolt

A 4.1 magnitude earthquake struck Southern California late Wednesday, but there were no immediate reports of damage or injury.

The quake was centered in Orange County, eight miles northeast of Anaheim and about 30 miles south of downtown Los Angeles, the Associated Press reported.

The US Geological Survey said it struck at 8:17 p.m. at a depth of about three miles.

More from GlobalPost: 5.5 magnitude earthquake hits northern California

Wednesday's quake — widely felt in the heavily populated area as a single quick, sharp jolt, according to the AP — was followed by a 2.4 magnitude aftershock a few minutes later.

"Strong jolt here in Anaheim Hills for about two seconds," the Orange County Register cited Alan Trudell as writing in an iPad message. "No damage, just very loud."

More than 2,700 people in Orange, Riverside, Los Angeles and San Diego counties also reported feeling the quake.

"It's a small earthquake, but a good reminder that we live in earthquake country, and should be prepared for the big one," said Marc Stone, an Orange County Fire Department spokesman, according to the Register.

The paper also cited US Geological Survey geophysicist Bob Dollar as saying it may have originated in the Whittier fault, though that was too early to determine.

"It's kind of complex in here," he said. "It's one of these things where there's a bunch of different faults that kind of run parallel; you've got a zone of faults, and we always quibble about it a little bit."

California Governor Jerry Brown on March 27 proclaimed an annual "tsunami preparedness week," Agence France-Presse reported. 

California has been hit a number of tsunamis over the decades, with last year's tsunami generated by the earthquake off Japan producing waves on the US West Coast.