Two people confirmed dead and a dozen injured after 6.4 earthquake hit Northern California and left city of Rio Dell ‘a total mess’: Experts warn ANOTHER powerful quake may hit next week
- Two people are dead and at least 11 injured after a 6.4 earthquake hit California
- The quake struck southwest of Ferndale and left town of Rio Dell a ‘total mess’
- Its epicenter was 210 miles north of San Francisco, where a quake hit last week
- More than 71K customers in Humboldt County are experiencing power outages
Two people are dead and at least a dozen others injured after a 6.4 earthquake rattled northern California early Tuesday, leaving thousands without power as experts warn another powerful jolt could strike as soon as next week.
The tremor rocked the stretch of rural area and left some towns in a shambles, with at least one structural fire and several homes knocked off their foundations.
Around 80 aftershocks followed the first quake, with the most powerful aftershock rattling the town of Rio Dell, according to Mark Ghilarducci, director of California’s Office of Emergency Services.
Many residents were jolted awake when the earthquake struck at 2:34 a.m. near Ferndale, a small community about 210 miles northwest of San Francisco just three days after a 3.6 earthquake shook the Bay Area.
More than 71,000 customers remain without power as of late Monday afternoon and while Pacific Gas and Electric Company is actively working to restore power, there is no estimated timeframe for when it will be back on.
Two people are dead and at least a dozen injured after a 6.4 earthquake rattled northern California, leaving thousands without power as experts warn another jolt could strike next week. Pictured: A damaged house in Rio Dell, California
Homeowner Darren Gallagher looks at the collapsed second story porch of his house after a strong 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of northern California, in Rio Dell
A 6.4 earthquake rocked California Tuesday leaving tens of thousands without power, about 200 miles north of San Francisco, three days after a 3.6 quake shook the Bay Area
The sheriff’s office confirmed that two people have died as a result of medical emergencies occurring during and/or just following the earthquake.
They also say approximately 11 people have been reported as injured.
Officials warned Humboldt County residents that another powerful earthquake could be on the way as soon as next week and that the Californians should be prepared.
‘We live in earthquake country and this another example of the fact that earthquakes can happen at anytime without notice,’ Ghilarducci said.
‘And so it’s really important that we, as Californians, have a plan, have a family plan, have some supplies in case we lose power.’
According to Cynthia Pridmore, a senior engineering geologist with the California Geological Survey, there’s a 13 percent chance of another big jolt, of a 5.0-magnitude or stronger, striking in the next week.
She urged residents to gather food, water, flashlights and other supplies.
‘People do need to be prepared, especially if they’re in weakened structures to be mindful of where they’re staying,’ she said.
The earthquake on Tuesday left more than 71,000 customers without power – which is about 71 percent of Humboldt County – after it struck 7.5 miles southwest of Ferndale, a small community 210 miles north-west of San Francisco, the US Geological Survey reported.
Numerous gas leaks, downed powerlines and at least one structure fire in Ferndale were reported by area residents and officials.
It comes just three days after a 3.6 earthquake rattled San Francisco as seismologists warn the Bay Area is due a devastating quake in the next three decades – potentially causing thousands of deaths and billions of dollars in damage.
Homeowner Darren Gallagher inspects the collapsed second story porch of his house in Rio Dell after a strong 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of northern California
A Christmas tree is seen through a broken window after a strong 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of northern California, in Rio Dell, California
Upended and damaged items are seem in a kitchen after a strong quake rocked Rio Dell
Earthquake damage is seen at the Humboldt Creamery building in Loleta, California
The Humboldt County Office of Emergency Services initially tweeted that there were reports of ‘widespread damages to roads and homes,’ but authorities subsequently indicated there were pockets of significant damage but overall it was less than what might be expected from the size of the tremor.
The region is part of California’s lightly populated far north coast, home to redwood forests, mountains, a port and a state university. Long before the state legalized marijuana, Humboldt was part of the three-county Emerald Triangle where clandestine cannabis production was legendary.
There is ‘some damage’ to buildings and infrastructure, and two hospitals in the area lost power and were running on generators, but the scale of the damage appeared to be ‘minimal’ compared to the strength of the quake, Brian Ferguson, a spokesperson for the California Governor´s Office of Emergency Services said. There was also a report of a gas leak, he added.
Authorities closed an important bridge in Ferndale that was showing damage. The state highway department tweeted a photo showing crumbled pavement.
State Sen. Mike McGuire, who represents the area, said the small city of Rio Dell, home to just a few thousand people, sustained most of the damage. McGuire said he was not in the area at the time of the earthquake, but received reports of ‘violent,’ sustained shaking.
There was one confirmed structural fire, a few structures came off their foundations, and the municipal water system was damaged but it was unclear if any homes and businesses lost access to water, McGuire said.
California State Route 211 at Fernbridge, a 1,320-foot-long concrete arch bridge that spans the Eel River near Fortuna, California is closed after being damaged during this morning’s quake
At least 80 aftershocks followed with the most powerful aftershock rattling Rio Dell (pictured)
Diana McIntosh shows damage at her home in Eureka 22, following an earthquake that cut off power to thousands and caused some damage to roads and homes
The power outage involved the main transmission line that runs into the region and Pacific Gas & Electric´s restoration work was slowed because rain prevented use of a helicopter to assess damage, McGuire said. The utility expected electricity to be restored by evening, but residents should be prepared for more time without power, he said.
Humboldt County has about 136,000 residents and is in a part of the state that has a long history of large earthquakes, including a magnitude 7.0 in 1980 and a 6.8 in 2014, according to the California Earthquake Authority.
The city of Eureka, population 26,000, said on its website that ‘no significant damage’ was immediately reported.
Eureka resident Dan Dixon, 40, said he and his wife were sleeping when it jolted them awake and shook everything, throwing pictures in their home to the ground. Their infant daughter, he said, slept through it.
‘It was probably the most violent earthquake we have felt in the 15 years I have lived here,’ he said. ‘It physically moved our bed.’
Caroline Titus, a resident of Ferndale, tweeted video in her darkened home of toppled furniture and smashed dishes.
‘Our home is a 140-year-old Victorian. The north/south shaking is very evident in what fell,’ she tweeted.
‘That was a big one,’ she said in another tweet.
Ferndale journalist Caroline Titus shared a video clip on Twitter of her darkened home of toppled furniture and smashed dishes after the quake, describing it as ‘a mess’
Ferndale journalist Caroline Titus shared footage of her home after the quake
Larkin O’Leary, 41, of Santa Rosa, told DailyMail.com she had traveled to spend her anniversary with her husband in Ferndale, where they had been jolted by an earthquake last year.
They decided to try again and booked the romance package at a historic inn, the same spot as a year ago. But this time, they booked the second floor instead of the top floor.
‘Last year we were on the top floor but I was too scared to stay there again so we stayed on the second story. I cannot believe it happened again!!’
O´Leary said she woke at 2:30 a.m. with an eerie feeling and tried to go back to sleep.
‘I laid back down again and it was almost as if someone jumped on the bed,’ she said. ‘It was so terrifying.’
‘It shook in a way I had never experienced. It was up, down, all around,’ she said.
The couple quickly got out of Ferndale and returned to their home.
‘Never again,’ O´Leary said.
The earthquake occurred in an area known as the Mendocino Triple Junction, where three tectonic plates meet.
‘We’re in this moment of geologic time where the most exciting, dynamic area of California happens to be Humboldt County and the adjacent offshore area,’ said Lori Dengler, professor emeritus of geology at Cal Poly Humboldt.
Dengler said it is typical for there to be uncertainty about damage after a large earthquake. But she noted that much of the area is rural and wood frame construction is common, which in the past has helped limit damage.
The quake triggered the West Coast’s warning system that detects the start of a quake and sends alerts to cellphones in the affected region that can give people notice to take safety precautions before strong shaking reaches them.
About 270,000 users of the MyShake app received notifications early Tuesday, said Ferguson, the Cal OES spokesperson. The app is funded by the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.
But most of the 3 million who were notified through Google are Android users who have the alerts preprogrammed into their phone operating system, according to Robert de Groot, part of the U.S. Geological Survey’s ShakeAlert operations team.
Ria Espinoza shared a photo of her bathroom and said the quake felt like intense turbulence
A grocery store in Humboldt County was a mess after this morning’s earthquake sent an avalanche of canned drinks into aisle 8
Another area resident Ria Espinoza shared a photo of her damaged bathroom and told KNTV that the quake ‘felt like turbulence on an airplane, like intense turbulence.’
Wendy Pickett Monolias, who lives in the neighboring town of Eureka, told The Missoulian that she awoke to the violent shaking.
‘Once the shaking finally stopped, we got our flashlights and phones and looked around. Everything was in shambles,’ Pickett Monolias said.
‘Things you wouldn’t expect to have fallen over or broken did. An entire cabinet in the bathroom fell over and broke apart.’
The earthquake caused strong shaking and likely produced light to moderate damage, according to the USGS, which uses a seismometer to measure the time, location and magnitude of a tremor. An earthquake’s intensity depends on its distance from a fault, its direction and the local geology.
California Highway Patrol in Humboldt County reported cracks in the Fernbridge in Ferndale and closed it to traffic, journalist Andy Clausen said on Twitter.
‘It’s the main bridge over the Eel River in and out of Ferndale, next closest one is significantly further south off 101,’ he wrote.
Another California residents shared an image online that showed a smashed ornament
Homes were shaken, with books and other items falling to the floor due to the quake
A resident shared images of their house after the quake struck in the early hours
Items fell over and broke as the 6.4 earthquake shook California on Tuesday morning
Kitchen items fell out of cupboards in one resident’s kitchen on Tuesday morning
Highway 101 and Highway 299 remained open through Humboldt County, State Senator Mike McGuire said on Twitter, noting that transportation officials were assessing state highway infrastructure.
‘Power is out across the county. Do not call 911 unless you are experiencing an immediate emergency,’ Humboldt Country Office of Emergency Services tweeted.
More than 3,500 people reported to the USGS that they felt the earthquake and more than a dozen aftershocks reported in the aftermath, the service said online.
The quake jolted some residents awake, with one man in Arcata posting on Twitter that it ‘felt like a bomb going off.
‘That earthquake was insane,’ according to Twitter user Jimmy Eller, who said he lives in Humboldt County. ‘A good 15-20 seconds of shaking.’
One resident in Chico, which is in northern California, said they felt the quake and described it as a ‘rolling feeling’.
Others, however, said it was the alert on their phones that woke them up, not the actual shaking of the quake.
An emergency alert was issued by USGS urging people to ‘drop, cover, hold on’
The strong earthquake struck off the coast of northern California on Tuesday
The earthquake, which happened just off the coast of northern California on Tuesday at 2.34am was at a depth of 16.1km, USGS said.
Ferndale has a population of around 1,500 people. It is 261 miles north of San Francisco and 19.6 miles south of Eureka, California.
An emergency alert was issued USGS, which read: ‘Earthquake Detected! Drop, Cover, Hold On. Protect Yourself.’
It follows a 3.6 quake on Saturday morning which hit the San Francisco Bay Area at around 3.39am.
The USGS said that it had a depth of 3.6 miles and was centered close to El Cerrito.
California Highway Patrol in Humboldt County responded to reported cracks in the Fernbridge in Ferndale and closed it to traffic
This photo shows a massive crack in the Fernbridge in Ferndale following the earthquake
California Highway Patrol in Humboldt County reported cracks in the Fernbridge – the main bridge over Eel River in Ferndale and closed it to traffic
The earthquake overnight caused strong shaking and likely produced light to moderate damage, according to the USGS, which uses a seismometer to measure the time, location and magnitude of a tremor. An earthquake’s intensity depends on its distance from a fault, its direction and the local geology.
About five earthquakes of magnitudes between 6.0 and 7.0 happen each year in California and Nevada, according to recent data, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The California Independent System Operator, which oversees much of the state’s electrical grid, issued a transmission emergency notice for the area following the earthquake.
Maps from the moment of the quake showed some weak shaking across the region.
California is regularly shaken by tremors and seismologists warn a quake capable of causing widespread destruction is almost certain to hit the state in the next 30 years.
Exactly one year ago a 6.2 earthquake struck in Cape Mendocino, in Humboldt County.
A 6.7-magnitude earthquake in 1994 in Northridge, northwest of Los Angeles, left at least 60 people dead and caused an estimated $10 billion in damage, while a 6.9 quake in San Francisco in 1989 claimed the lives of 67 people.
A map showing the location of the seismic event on Tuesday
The epicentre of the seismic activity was 130miles north of San Francisco
Another map of the quake showing its epicentre in California
Why is California so prone to earthquakes?
Earthquakes are triggered by a variety of issues arising from the movement of the planet’s tectonic plates, when they jerk and slide past each other.
California is so prone to earthquakes because it lies on the San Andreas Fault, a transform boundary formed 25-30 million years ago that extends roughly 750 miles through the state.
A transform boundary, more commonly known as a fault, is when two tectonic plates comes together.
The driving force of earthquakes in California is movement along the San Andreas Fault and other associated faults within the San Andreas Fault System that form this boundary.
The Pacific Plate (on the west) moves northwestward relative to the North American Plate (on the east), causing earthquakes along the fault.
The Pacific plate is only moving northwest at a rate of about 50 millimeters (2 inches) per year, but this is enough to cause significant friction.
The presence of the San Andreas fault was brought dramatically to world attention on April 18, 1906, when sudden displacement along the fault produced the great San Francisco earthquake and resulting fires.
It caused more than 3,000 deaths – marking the greatest loss of life from a natural disaster in California’s history.
Southern California has thousands of smaller earthquakes every year, but locals refer to a bigger upcoming event as ‘the big one’.
A 2015 report from the US Geological Survey has warned the risk of ‘the big one’ hitting California has increased dramatically.
‘We know that tectonic forces are continually tightening the springs of the San Andreas fault system, making big quakes inevitable,’ said study author Tom Jordan, Director of the Southern California Earthquake Center.
The great majority of California’s population lives in the vicinity of the San Andreas Fault.
Some cities, towns, housing developments, and roads are actually built on it, and a tunnel of the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit System (BART) is bored right through the fault zone.
Measures taken to offset the danger from earthquakes include reinforcing roads and bridges to withstand tremors and constructing buildings to absorb seismic shocks.
Source: USGS/ earthquakecountry.org/Encyclopedia Britannica
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