An image of the earthquake that struck south of the US-Mexico border, felt across southern California and Arizona.

An image of the earthquake that struck south of the US-Mexico border, felt across southern California and Arizona. Photo: US Geological Survey/AP

LOS ANGELES: A powerful 7.2-magnitude earthquake near the Mexico-US border has rocked buildings as far away as Los Angeles and was felt in a wide area in the two countries, officials said.

The US Geological Survey said the quake, which struck at 3:40pm on Sunday (8.40am Qld time), was at a depth of 10 kilometres was located 26 kilometres south-southwest of Guadalupe Victoria, Baja California, Mexico.

It was 64 kilometres southwest of San Luis, in the US state of Arizona, the USGS added.

The agency first reported a 6.9 magnitude quake but later upgraded its assessment.

The quake has cut off some communication lines in affected areas, leaving officials fearful of possible injuries or damage. The quake was struck near the city of Mexicali, the capital of the state of Baja California.

''This is a large quake with the potential of causing damage because it is not far from a population centre,'' said Carlos Valdez, director of the National Seismological Institute.

He said the epicentre was just 18 kilometres from Mexicali, a city of 900,000 people.

Valdez said some communications were lost after the temblor from Mexicali and around Tijuana, which was 167 kilometres from the epicentre.

Some news report showed scenes of panic in the area around Tijuana but no injuries or major damage.

The Los Angeles Fire Department said its initial assessment found ''no significant damage or injuries'' but had responded to an increase in automatic alarms and stuck elevators.

The fire department said was checking transportation infrastructure, large public venues, apartment buildings and power lines from the ground and the air to ensure safety.

The temblor was forceful enough to move buildings in Los Angeles and San Diego in southern California, as well as in Arizona, The Los Angeles Times reported.

The Times said rides were temporarily closed at the Disneyland theme park in Anaheim. KABC Television in Los Angeles said high-rise buildings in that city and in San Diego rocked back and forth when the quake hit and that some residents saw electric power poles moving.

The Yuma, Arizona, sheriff's department also said it was responding to many building alarms but that it had no immediate reports of injuries.

The Yuma Sun reported Fry's grocery store front-end manager Karla Favela said that, ''a little bit of everything'' fell down every aisle of the store.

''The first thing I thought of - have you seen the movie '2012?' The part when the grocery store splits in half?''

In Mexico, the National Seismological Institute said it had no early reports of injuries or damage in the northwestern state.

An agency official, Adriana Gonzalez, said that people had reported feeling the quake across a wide area of Baja California and Sonora states.

The USSG said it had reports that quake was felt as far away as Las Vegas, Nevada, some 460 kilometres from the epicentre as well as in Los Angeles, 360 kilometres away, and in Phoenix, Arizona, 300 kilometres.

AFP


http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/world/major-earthquake-rocks-los-angeles-20100405-rm15.html