Twenty million people in three U.S. states and Mexico felt Sunday's Baja California earthquake — a more powerful temblor than the Haiti quake yet the death toll and devastation were far less. Why? Scientists say part of the answer is location, location, location.
Only about 500 people in the agricultural communities south of the growing city of Mexicali were exposed to the most violent shaking. "If you had to place a large earthquake, this was a good location," said seismologist Susan Hough of the U.S. Geological Survey.
The magnitude-7.2 Baja quake is believed to have begun in the southeast section of the Laguna Salada fault and moved toward the northwest, focusing much of its energy on a vast, largely vacant desert region.

(Police tape marks off a home damaged by an earthquake in Calexico, Calif. Monday, April 5, 2010. The area was struck by a powerful earthquake on Sunday that was centered 26 km (16 miles) southwest from Guadalupe Victoria, in Baja California, Mexico.)

Scientists say the seismic punch would have been a lot worse had the quake ruptured north toward the Mexicali metropolitan region with about 900,000 people.

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La Paz, the heavenly capital of the state of Baja California Sur, lies in northwest Mexico. It is one of the main cities of the southeastern Baja California Peninsula region and is located 220 km (136 mi) north of Los Cabos and 1464 km (907 mi) south of Tijuana. The average year-round temperature is 24º C (75º F).
This important tourist destination has a wide array of natural attractions, such as the beautiful islands of Espiritu Santo and Cerralvo, which are ideal places for scuba diving. While scuba diving you can see marine species like hammerhead sharks and giant manta rays. La Paz also offers many idyllic places to go camping or do ecotourism outings, including Puerto Balandra and the Sierra de La Laguna Biosphere Reserve. In addition, you can visit La Paz’s impeccable beaches, such as El Tecolote and Pichilingue, where you’ll find the main port. Along the coast you’ll also see fabulous marinas with excellent facilities. The marinas host prestigious sporting events like the La Paz Goldcup Sportfishing Tournament.
What’s more, in La Paz you’ll see many important edifices of historical and cultural importance, such as the Catedral de Nuestra Señora de la Paz, the Natural History Museum and Las Californias Library. At night, you can enjoy the city’s bars, discos and restaurants. As for the cuisine, you can indulge in exquisite Baja California-style seafood and fish dishes, such as grilled lobster with butter, fish tacos with a tasty sweet and sour sauce and clams cooked in their shell, which are added to soups and other delicious regional dishes.