4.8-magnitude earthquake rattles Sierra Nevada towns

BIG PINE, California — An earthquake rattled the eastern range of California’s Sierra Nevada on Tuesday afternoon, shaking remote communities but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries, authorities said.

The US Geological Survey reported that the magnitude 4.8 quake struck just after 3 p.m. near Big Pine, a community along scenic US Route 395. The temblor was followed by three aftershocks.

Cody Lawson, a dispatcher at the nearby Bishop Police Department, said he felt the quake that shook for about six seconds. He said no one had immediately called to report an emergency in the town of about 2,500 residents.

“I thought someone hit our building because there was a loud boom and everything shook for about four to six seconds,” Lawson said. “It hit hard right off the bat.”

Lawson said some people in the dispatch center got under their desks. He went to a door frame and waited for the shaking to stop.

Minutes after he got back to his desk and he answered a call from a reporter, he felt an aftershock.

“It was not as strong,” he said. “We’re rolling.”

Residents across the mountain range in Fresno in the San Joaquin Valley also reported feeling the quake.

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