A 4.4-magnitude earthquake shook Los Angeles early Tuesday, but caused only minor damage and no injuries, dpa reported.
But with the recent devastating earthquakes in Chile and Haiti still in the news, the temblor frightened thousands of residents who were shaken awake when it rattled windows and doors and toppled items off shelves.
"The earthquake knocked me out of bed," one resident told local TV news station KABC. "It was pretty scary. I ran out from (the) house and it was so cold outside and I stayed in car for like 10 minutes."
The most serious damage occurred on the Santa Ana Freeway where a 1.6-metre-long crack was reported in the roadway, which was closed for two hours as workers fixed the damage.
According to the US Geological Survey, the temblor struck at 4:04 am about 17.6 kilometres east of downtown Los Angeles and at a depth of about 17 kilometres under the surface. The earthquake was felt over a large area of southern California and more than 1,000 people called in to report it to authorities.