Sunrise light on a grove of tufa towers emerging from the water of Mono Lake with soft green and dusty-red wild grasses in the foreground, Canada geese in the shallow water with reflections of the rocky towers, and desert hills in the distance.

Earthquakes jolt Mono Lake region

Sunrise light on a grove of tufa towers emerging from the water of Mono Lake with soft green and dusty-red wild grasses in the foreground, Canada geese in the shallow water with reflections of the rocky towers, and desert hills in the distance.

A swarm of moderate earthquakes struck overnight with two magnitude 5.7 and one magnitude 5.5 centered approximately 30 miles north-northeast of Lee Vining, just inside the Nevada border. No damage was reported, but most residents were awakened by a moderate rocking motion lasting less than 30 seconds. The temblors were felt from Hawthorne, Nevada and across the Central Sierra and Central Valley. Minor earthquake activity continues in the region, including a small earthquake along the southeast shore of Mono Lake. The Mono Basin and Eastern Sierra are geologically active, and there is always concern and speculation with future volcanic activity. Earthquake swarms like this have occurred in the past near Long Valley and Mammoth Lakes, and thus far all have faded into geologic history.

Recent earthquake activity near Mono Lake.
A swarm of earthquakes hit the Mono Lake region overnight and early morning on December 28, 2016. Screen capture courtesy of earthquate.usgs.gov.

3 Comments

  1. Some Sacramento news outlets are reporting that Ca. State Parks have closed Bodie “for the time being” I’d like to know if there’s actually any damage – apparently the ghost town is only about 6 miles from the epicenter.