Video: 5.2 magnitude earthquake shakes San Diego

Homes, offices, parks, and even the iconic zoo in San Diego, California, awoke to tremors on Monday. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported an earthquake just after 10 a.m. with its epicenter 2.5 miles south of Julian, followed by a dozen aftershocks.

At a magnitude of 5.2, it is the strongest earthequake in decades for the area. While it fell short of the record set in 1984 or even the one in 1991, this time cell phones and security cameras captured images that quickly went viral, including one from the San Diego Zoo itself.

Security cameras at Safari Park captured adult elephants forming a circle around their calves to protect them. "Elephants have the unique ability to feel sounds through their feet and formed what is known as an "alert circle" during the 5.2 magnitude earthquake that shook Southern California this morning,'" explained the fascinating footage from the San Diego Zoo's Wildlife Alliance."

"I thought the windows were going to blow out (...) It was kinda scary," Paul Nelson, owner of the Eagle Mining Co, a historic gold mine that now serves as a tourist attraction in Julian, told AFP. Although the tunnels of the old mine remained intact, the quake rattled the shelves in the gift shop."

Tijuana trembles

The earthquake was also felt in the Mexican city of Tijuana, neighboring San Diego. Local reports indicated that authorities evacuated buildings like the Municipal Palace, which had to temporarily suspend its services.