On Sunday, January 1, New year’s day, Northern California had its second earthquake in less than two weeks, which officials claimed resulted in damage and power outages.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the New Year’s Day earthquake, which had a preliminary magnitude of 5.4, occurred about 9 miles southeast of Rio Dell in Humboldt County just after 10:30 a.m. local time (1:35 p.m. ET) on Sunday.
According to the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office, there have been reports of home damage in Rio Dell. On Sunday, 50% of the city’s residents were without electricity, and 30% were without water. It indicated restoration work was in progress.
According to the USGS, this 5.4 magnitude earthquake was centered around 9 miles southeast of Rio Dell and struck about 30 miles south of Eureka. According to early reports from the agency, the quake was relatively shallow, occurring at a depth of roughly 17.3 miles.
Debra Garnes, mayor of Rio Dell, reported feeling the tremor at her home.
“It was absurd. Garnes said in the news that the earthquake felt more forceful this time. It was more violent but shorter. My fridge shifted two feet. Items emerged from the refrigerator. My wall has a crack in it from the force of it.
According to Garnes, the earthquake also caused a break in the wall of a neighbor’s home.
The Northern California region has seen two earthquakes in less than a month. Two individuals died due to a 6.4 earthquake that struck the area on December 20. According to Garnes, 73 homes in Rio Dell from that earthquake were yellow – tagged, and 27 homes were red-tagged, indicating they were unsafe due to damage.
The area is known for its relatively frequent seismic activity, but the 6.4 – magnitude earthquake in this primarily rural area, noted for its redwood trees, local fisheries, the lumber industry, and dairy farms, caused more significant disturbance than usual.
Along with the ground trembling, Northern California saw tremendous rains that caused significant flooding and submerged highways. It necessitated evacuations in some regions just as people were getting ready to ring in the New Year.
Garnes told on Sunday, “We are kind of starting over – we had moved from our reaction to recovery, and now we are basically in both.” The southern part of town really took it hard this time, so we need to be back in response.
According to the mayor, the town lost “pockets” of power, and 30% of the town’s water supply was shut off. She claimed that one of the town’s main roadways has a 35 – foot crack in it.
According to Garnes, some homes and buildings that were already damaged by the quake in December had more damage on Sunday, and some may need to be demolished.
However, the mayor noted that there had been a “tremendous response from the community,” including assistance from neighboring towns and state and local agencies.
Garnes remarked, “Pretty much everyone is doing their best to assist us in getting through this.”
The USGS designated the newest earthquake a green pager as of Sunday morning, meaning there were no projected fatalities and very few estimated economic losses.
