The quake centered south of California's border with Mexico was widely felt, swaying buildings as far away as San Diego, Los Angeles and Arizona.
ABC7 Chicago's Linda Yu was in Los Angeles when the earthquake hit.
"The earthquake lasted long enough that it was a rolling motion," Yu said. "We began to feel nautious. We were far enough away. There was no damage. The lights didn't come falling down."
There has been no confirmed damage, but some power outages were reported in southern Arizona and Tijuana, Mexico. Jones says any damage would likely have occurred closer to the epicenter such as in the Mexican city of Mexicali or in U.S. border cities.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
