Fears of huge earthquake after 100 mini tremors strike same fault in less than a week

There are fears a huge earthquake could hit California following more than 100 tremors hitting an area on the US West Coast just days after a 4.6 magnitude quake.

The 4.6 magnitude earthquake hit Monterey County, south of San Francisco, on Monday, November 12, but the area has been hit by 134 smaller quakes about 5km from the epicentre, the San Andreas fault, SFGate reports.

Earthquakes between 4.0 and 4.9 magnitudes are categorised as light.

But Thomas Jordan, director of the Southern California Earthquake Centre told the LA Times last year, that any seismic activity in the area made seismologists nervous.

“Because we recognise that the probability of having a large earthquake goes up,” he said.

Experts said even the smallest swarm of earthquakes could trigger a big one.

While there were no reports of injuries of significant damage from the 4.6 magnitude earthquake, retired seismologist Dr Lucy Jones believes the San Andreas fault is capable of causing an 8.2 magnitude earthquake.

"This will happen at some point. Plate tectonics isn’t turning off," Dr Jones told Southern California Public Radio in May.

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"When it happens, we’re not going to have water. It’s going to take six months to get water back in all of our houses. We could lose electricity for the whole western US. We’re going to have no transportation. City-wide fires have the potential to burn down the city."

Dr Jones has previously warned residents along the West Coast to prepare for a large earthquake, which she believes is overdue.

An 8.2 magnitude earthquake is stronger than the quake, which hit Mexico killing more than 130 people in September. That quake was a magnitude of 7.1.

US Geological Survey seismologist Ole Kaven said only 17 of the 134 earthquakes since November 12 were stronger than a 2.5 magnitude and six were greater than 3.0. He described seismic activity in the area near the fault as normal since it’s a “creeping section” of the San Andreas fault.

Mr Kaven said the quake had “quite a productive aftershock sequence” and it came as a reminder to residents that “we live in earthquake county”.

"We suspect there will be aftershocks in the 2 to 3 (magnitude) range for at least a few more weeks,” he said.