California earthquake: 14,000 people lack electricity, Newsom declares emergency

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Power was restored to tens of thousands of people, but crews continued to survey damage while the city of more than 3,000 people remained without running water Wednesday afternoon, a day after a 6.4-magnitude quake shook coastal Northern California, killing at least two people. and more than ten injuries.

The quake occurred shortly after 2:30 a.m. Tuesday with an epicenter 8 miles west of the small city of Ferndale, population 1,400, and was followed by dozens of aftershocks.

PG&E reported at 1:30 p.m. that about 3,300 homes and businesses remain without power in Humboldt County, and 72,000 people were without power early Tuesday morning.

The two victims who died were residents between the ages of 72 and 83, Humboldt County Sheriff William Honsal said Tuesday afternoon at a press conference at Rio Del City Hall. The sheriff said both of them suffered medical injuries and “did not receive timely medical care” due to the quake.

In a 1 p.m. update Wednesday, the Humboldt County Office of Emergency Services described the two victims as having pre-existing health conditions that were “believed to have been exacerbated by the stress of the earthquake.”

On Wednesday, the local emergency office increased the number of infections to 17, compared to 12 the day before. Honsal said on Tuesday that the reported injuries ranged from minor to moderate.

At least 30 homes and one commercial building have been “identified as structurally unsafe,” county officials wrote in an update Wednesday. The total number includes at least 15 homes in Rio Del, City Manager Kyle Knopp said at a news conference Tuesday.

Officials said Rio Del, a city of about 3,400 people, experienced a water outage and was without running water until early Wednesday afternoon.

The Sheriff’s Office has issued a boiling water warning for the Rio Dell and some parts of Fortuna.

Kenny Runsbottom walks through rubble inside an auto parts store after an earthquake in Rio Del, California, Tuesday, December 20, 2022. A powerful earthquake rocked rural Northern California early Tuesday, waking residents, and cutting power to 70,000 people. people, and damage to some buildings and roads, officials said. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez) Godofredo A. Vásquez AP

Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency Tuesday night in Humboldt County. Honsal also declared a local emergency.

“California stands with the people of Humboldt County, and the state has moved quickly to support the emergency response underway with local and tribal partners,” Newsom said in a statement.

Damage assessments are expected to continue until at least midday Wednesday in Rio del Rio del Knopp, Knopp said, and the city is preparing to receive up to 150 displaced residents.

The Gold Country chapter of the American Red Cross has opened a shelter in the firefighter’s pavilion at Rohner Park, 9 Park Way in Fortuna. The organization said on Wednesday that it took care of nine people on Tuesday night.

Building inspector Kevin Caldwell, red flags a home in Rio Del, Calif., that lost its awning and deck, after an earthquake hit Humboldt County, Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2022. A powerful earthquake rocked a rural stretch of the Northern California coast and residents said they woke up early in the morning, officials said. On Tuesday, power was cut off for 70,000 people, and some buildings and roads were damaged. (Kent Porter/The Press Democrat via AP) Kent Porter AP

Photos posted on social media showed widespread damage to homes and businesses in Humboldt County – from knocked-out shelves and furniture to broken glass and dishware. In a news release Tuesday afternoon, the sheriff’s office reported “significant structural damage, including to gas and water lines” in Rio Del.

An earthquake-damaged home can be seen in Rio Del, California, Tuesday, December 20, 2022. A powerful earthquake shook a rural area of ​​Northern California early Tuesday, waking residents, cutting power to thousands of people, and destroying Some buildings and roads. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez) Godofredo A. Vásquez AP Power Restored to Thousands, But Some Still in the Dark

PG&E on an online outage map as of 1:30 p.m. Wednesday showed that about 3,300 customers were still without power across Humboldt County, down from 14,500 at 7:30 a.m.

Company spokeswoman Megan McFarland said in a tweet that the utility expects to restore power to “virtually all customers” starting at 3 p.m. on Wednesday.

PG&E said about 72,000 customers lost power when the quake first struck, all in Humboldt County.

A person identifying himself as Michelle, a street sweeper of broken glass following the earthquake in Rio Del, Calif., Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2022. (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via AP) The Santiago Mejia AP Bridge was damaged in the earthquake.

Caltrans closed Fernbridge on Highway 211 on the Eel River after authorities found cracks. It remained closed until Wednesday morning to non-emergency vehicles.

The agency awarded a $6 million grant to contractors to begin immediate support and repair work on the 111-year-old structure, Caltrans director Tony Tavares said.

Those crews were scheduled to arrive Tuesday evening, Tavares said during a press conference Tuesday morning at Cal OES headquarters in Sacramento County.

Humboldt County emergency officials said there is no available estimate of when Fernbridge will reopen to traffic.

Interstates 36, 101 and 299 remain open.

Officials closed the Fernbridge Bridge in Ferndale, California, after the earthquake Tuesday, December 20, 2022. A powerful earthquake that rocked a rural stretch of the Northern California coast knocked out power to thousands of homes and businesses and damaged roads and homes. (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via AP) The Santiago Mejia AP earthquake struck in a region familiar to earthquakes.

Home to about 136,000 residents, Humboldt County is located in an area of ​​the state that has a long history of large earthquakes. That includes a magnitude 7.0 earthquake in 1980 and a magnitude 6.8 in 2014, according to the California Earthquake Service.

The area sits at a triple junction of tectonic activity – the Pacific, North American, and Juan de Fuca plates intersect just off the coast.

“It’s a complex area offshore, where we have the Pacific plate, the North American plate … and some small pieces of other plates,” Cindy Pridmore, a geologist with the California Geological Survey, said at the Cal OES briefing Tuesday.

Pridmore said the area has seen more than 40 earthquakes of magnitude 6.0 to 7.0 in the past.

As of Wednesday morning, more than 130 aftershocks had been recorded in the area, 63 of them larger than 2.5, the USGS said.

A person walks near a damaged home in the aftermath of the earthquake in Rio Del, California, on Tuesday, December 20, 2022. (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via AP) Santiago Mejia AP

This story was originally published on Dec 21, 2022 at 8:24 am.

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Michael McGough anchors the Sacramento Bee’s breaking news reporting staff, covering public safety and other local stories. A native of Sacramento and a lifelong resident of D.C., he interned at The Bee while attending Sacramento State, where he earned a degree in journalism.

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