Quake alert app
How Did an App Know an Earthquake Was Hitting California Before It Happened? By Laura Geggel, Senior Writer | April 5, 2018 06:15pm ET The Quake Alert app warns users before an earthquake is about to hit. Credit: Early Warning Labs; Getty Some people in Los Angeles knew about today's earthquake before it even hit. Those who had the beta Quake Alert application on their smartphones got about a 30-second warning before the shaking hit at 12:29 p.m. PDT (19:29 UTC). The magnitude-5.3 earthquake struck about 38 miles (61 kilometers) off the coast of California today (April 5), according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). "That was the first earthquake I've felt since I got access to the @EarlyWarningLab beta app," tweeted Alissa Walker, an editor at the real estate blog Curbed. "I had 34 seconds warning — enough time to drop, cover, and hold on, which I would have done if I knew shaking was going to be strong." [Image Gallery: This Millennium'