An earthquake has struck the city of Las Vegas, rattling hundreds of thousands of residents and vacationers in the Nevada desert. The magnitude 3.8 quake was detected at 4.47pm ET less than 15 miles from the Las Vegas Strip, according to the US Geological Survey. Light to moderate shaking has been reported throughout the city, which is home to more than 680,000 people. Over two million people live in the greater Las Vegas metropolitan area. There have been no immediate reports of damage to the city or severe injuries, although some residents noted that their homes were shaken by the surprise quake. USGS noted that this was the first noteworthy earthquake stronger than 3.0 in magnitude to strike the Vegas area this year. One resident said: 'I’m on the east side in Las Vegas and it was like a train coming through the house. Literally had me and the dog running outside.' Initially, USGS called the seismic event a magnitude 4.1 earthquake but quickly revised their estimate minutes later, claiming it was slightly weaker than detectors showed.

Nevada is the third most seismically active state in the US, behind only California and Alaska, and state officials have noted that the Las Vegas Valley sits on active fault lines capable of producing powerful and damaging quakes. Scientists have revealed that Las Vegas sits near several faults in the US Southwest. These are large cracks in the Earth’s crust where the ground can suddenly slip and cause seismic stress to be released.

The city has two major faults nearby, one running through the middle of the Las Vegas Valley and another on the eastern side. These faults have moved in the past, and scientists believe they could move again. To help people prepare, USGS has included this Las Vegas area in its National Seismic Hazard Model, a detailed scientific forecast that predicts how strongly the ground might shake in the city during future earthquakes.

Meanwhile, the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, a state government agency studying Nevada’s natural hazards, has warned that Las Vegas has a real risk of serious earthquake damage. In 2015, the group predicted that an earthquake stronger than magnitude 6.0 could cause approximately $3 billion in damage. Stronger quake great than magnitude 7.0 were estimated to cause up to $21 billion in losses. Christie Rowe, the director of the Nevada Seismological Lab, told KSNV that Thursday's quake was very shallow, at just 4.5 miles deep, compared to other seismic events which erupt deeper underground.

Rowe said: 'That is a very Nevada style thing to have happen. We have shallow earthquakes in Nevada, that means for the same magnitude, we feel it more.'