By Bernie Woodall and Nichola Groom

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - It was the Los Angeles area's biggest earthquake in nearly 15 years, but for many the tremor felt like business as usual.

A 5.4-magnitude temblor at lunchtime on Tuesday sent office workers streaming from their downtown Los Angeles high-rises and led many to reach for their phones to check on friends and relatives.

But after it was all over, with only minor injuries and damage reported, many Southern California residents simply shrugged it off.

"We're jaded earthquake people, we've been through it all," said attorney Linda Hsu, 35, who walked down 38 flights of stairs from her downtown office following the quake. "Because we live in Southern California, we are all used to it."

Hsu's colleague, attorney Stephanie Brie, 28, said she was able to tell quickly the earthquake was not big enough to put them in any great danger.

"While it was going on, I didn't feel like I was going to die," Brie said.

Many compared it with the last big seismic event in 1994, the magnitude 6.7 Northridge quake that killed 60 people and struck before dawn.

In Chino Hills, the community east of Los Angeles that was closest to the quake's epicentre, city spokeswoman Denise Cattern said most residents agreed it was the biggest earthquake they had ever felt.