Two dead and thousands without power after powerful California earthquake

Numerous aftershocks followed the quake in Humboldt County

Two people have died, a dozen were injured and thousands left without power after a magnitude-6.4 earthquake shook northern California in the early hours of Tuesday.

The earthquake struck at 2.34am in Humboldt County and left a number of homes, roads and bridges badly damaged.

Utility lines were also ruptured causing widespread water and electricity cutoffs. More than 16,000 homes remained without power on Wednesday, according to poweroutage.us, a utility service tracker.

Two people died from “medical emergencies” around the time of the quake, Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office reported.

The earthquake had a depth of 10 miles, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). The epicentre was just offshore at a depth of about 10 miles. Numerous aftershocks followed including one of magnitude 4.6.

The earthquake occurred in 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.

One woman posted on Twitter on Tuesday that power had gone out in the Ferndale area and that her home had been left “a mess” from the tremor.

“That was a big one. Power is now out in #ferndaleca. House is a mess. #earthquake,” she tweeted along with a video showing the destruction inside her home.

A resident in nearby Sacramento said that he was alerted to the earthquake by the USGS’s Shake Alert app and noticed the blinds in his home shaking.

“The ⁦@USGS_ShakeAlert⁩ app alarm went off, warning me to expect shaking here in Sacramento from #earthquake in Eureka. I didn’t feel it my blinds did,” he said.

California state Senator Mike McGuire tweeted that he was in contact with power company PG&E and emergency management, while the state is standing by to assist people in need.

“We’re in contact with Emergency Management officials in Humboldt along with PG&E,” he said.

A road closure on California State Route 211 at Fernbridge, a 1,320-foot-long (402.3 m) concrete arch bridge that spans the Eel River near Fortuna, California (AP)

“The #earthquake was significant…6.1-6.3 magnitude. Aftershocks continue. No tsunami threat at this time. The State stands ready to provide any and all assistance needed.”

The USGS activated its Shake Alert system for those living in affected areas.

“The quake was large enough to trigger the delivery of #ShakeAlert-powered alerts to cell phones by the @fema Wireless Emergency Alert System,” the agency tweeted.

“We hope everyone is safe and if you felt shaking or got an alert you took a protective action like Drop, Cover, and Hold On.”

The earthquake came just three days after the San Francisco Bay Area was struck by a magnitude 3.6 earthquake. That quake was felt early on Saturday morning in the East Bay area just northeast of El Cerrito, near Oakland.

California is susceptible to experiencing many earthquakes, in part due to the fact that the San Andreas Fault runs through the state.

The fault, a boundary between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate which extends around 1,200km through California, is one of the most active fault zones in the world.

Besides California, other parts of the US have also experienced significant earthquakes in recent weeks.

Last week, Texas was rocked by its fourth-strongest earthquake in state history, when a magnitude 5.4 earthquake struck Midland in the western part of the state on Friday evening. A minor aftershock also followed that earthquake, but no significant damage or injuries were reported.

It marked the second moderate earthquake to hit the area in as many months after a magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck 95 miles west of Midland on 16 November.

The Associated Press contributed to this report