Earthquake Rocks the Southwest

By ANTHONY BREZNICAN .c The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (Oct. 16) - A magnitude-7.0 earthquake centered in the Southern California desert shook buildings from downtown Los Angeles to Las Vegas early today and knocked an Amtrak train off its tracks. There were no immediate reports of serious injuries or major damage.

Amtrak said its Southwest Chief en route from Chicago to Los Angeles derailed in the Mojave Desert near Ludlow, a community more than 125 miles northeast of Los Angeles. The passenger cars remained upright.

There were 155 passengers on the 25-car train. Passenger Sharon Kososinski said there was no panic on board.

''Most people were sound asleep,'' she told CNN. ''It was rocking and rolling, back at the sleeper cars ... That's the part of the train that's completely off the tracks.''

She said one passenger dislocated her shoulder. Amtrak said it planned to take the passengers to Los Angeles by bus.

Karen Kahler, a seismologist at the California Institute of Technology, said the quake hit at 2:46 a.m. and was centered 32 miles north of Joshua Tree, 100 miles east of Los Angeles. There were multiple aftershocks.

The earthquake was felt across hundreds of miles of Southern California and at least as far away as Yuma, Ariz. With a preliminary magnitude of 7.0, it was more than strong enough to cause major destruction but was centered in a remote area with few structures or residents.

Between 5,000 and 10,000 people lost power in Los Angeles and there were scattered transformer explosions. Downed power lines started small brush fires near Palm Springs.

''That was a bad one. Things are bouncing around all over. But we are all right. I have to go and call the kids,'' Lucille Manning said from her home in Chino, east of downtown Los Angeles.

The earthquake woke up tourists in Las Vegas, more than 150 miles from the epicenter.

''I wasn't sure what it was,'' said John Fabian, who was staying on the 18th floor of the Mirage Hotel. ''My wife hit me and said we've got to get ... out of here.''

Fabian's wife, Michele, added: ''The whole place was shaking like crazy.''

Authorities in Las Vegas and the Los Angeles area said there were no reports of serious damage or injuries. Authorities received a few calls from frightened people who were curious about damage.

''Most people just slept right through it,'' said Lt. Rich Paddock of the Orange County Sheriff's Department. ''It shook everything pretty good, but that was about it.''

The effects of the earthquake were more pronounced near the epicenter.

California Highway Patrol dispatcher Joe Serrano in Barstow said a bridge on Interstate 40 was heavily damaged but the freeway remained open.

Jacob Naylor, night manager at the Joshua Tree Inn in Joshua Tree, said the structure lost power but there was no sign of damage.

''Twelve guests, all definitely awake. A couple in from Holland, definitely shocked. A couple in from the U.K. asked me, 'Is this normal?''' Naylor said. ''They're all taking it rather well, kind of excited. Vacationers, new experiences, what can I say?''

In Yucca Valley, the Hi-Desert Medical Center was relying on emergency power, as was the San Bernardino County Sheriff's station in Joshua Tree.

Gerri Hagman, owner of the Homestead Inn in Twentynine Palms, near the epicenter, said she had a lot of broken dishes and things thrown off shelves. She couldn't see any structural damage.

''I'm a native Californian and I've been in a lot of them; this was a whopper,'' Hagman said.

''I live in town, and my house was rocking and rolling,'' Gunnery Sgt. Leah Gonzalez said from the Twentynine Palms Marine base. ''We were diving for the door frames.''

She paused as an aftershock hit at about 6 a.m., then said: ''That was a strong one.''

In Ridgecrest, a small community about 250 miles north of Los Angeles, groceries toppled from shelves and awoke residents, but officials said there were no reports of damage or injuries.

''I was asleep and shaken out of bed,'' said Rachel Holden, an editor at the Ridgecrest Daily Independent.

On Jan. 17, 1994, a 6.7-magnitude quake struck Northridge, near Los Angeles, killing 72 people and causing an estimated $40 billion in damage.

''The level of shaking is comparable to what was experienced in Northridge,'' said Lucy Jones, a seismologist with U.S. Geological Survey at Caltech. ''The good news is that there are fewer people out there.''

AP-NY-10-16-99 0957EDT

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