January 9, 2010
The Triplicate
No tsunami warning was issued after a 6.5 magnitude earthquake struck in the Pacific Ocean 27 miles from Eureka on Saturday afternoon.
Photo: Interior of Eureka Books (P. Scott Brown)
There have been multiple aftershocks since the 4:27 p.m. earthquake, which originated 10.2 miles under water, according to the U.S. Geological Survey Web site.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, there was no danger of a tsunami hitting the western coast of California.
There were reports of possible injuries in Eureka.
Del Norte County authorities, while acknowledging there was no tsunami warning, said local emergency personnel were on alert.
The quake caused stores to close in Eureka, people were evacuated and the power went out all over the city. The shaking lasted around 30 seconds.
USGS geophysicist Richard Buckmaster said the quake was felt as far south as Capitola in central California, and as far north as Roseburg in central Oregon. Aftershocks followed, the biggest registering at a magnitude of 4.5.
Pacific Gas & Electric Co. spokesman J.D. Guidi said power outages were widespread across most of Humboldt County, affecting about 25,000 customers.
The Bayshore Mall was closed off to customers and employees, and there were possible injuries, according to the Times-Standard newspaper. One employee reported that several people were picked up by ambulances.
Mall Employees also reported light fixtures falling out of the ceiling and floor tiles popping up off the ground, the newspaper reported. Another employee reported seeing chunks of the ceiling fall onto customers.
Police in Ferndale, the community closest to the quake's epicenter, said the jolt caused stucco to fall off City Hall and broke shop windows, strewing the historic downtown streets with glass shards.
“I thought a tire had blown off my truck because it was so hard to keep control of the vehicle,” Officer Lindsey Frank said. “Power lines were swaying, and I could see people in the fields trying to keep their balance.”
Televisions tumbled and objects were knocked off walls in Arcata, one resident said.
“The whole town is kind of freaked out right now,” said Judd Starks, the kitchen manager at a bar and restaurant known as The Alibi. “All the power is out, people are out walking around.”
Jo Wattle, a public works employee working in the public information post at the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office command center, told Triplicate reporter Adam Madison there have been reports of street lights and power lines down on the ground. Wattle said Humboldt county law enforcement and emergency crews' first concern was addressing multiple water, sewage and gas leaks that have been reported.
She said there have been no reported injuries as of 6 p.m.
The earthquake knocked out the power in Arcata, and one resident said many people had objects knocked off walls and televisions tumble.
“It was huge - one of the biggest earthquakes we've had up here in 20 years,” said Judd Starks, the kitchen manager at a bar and restaurant known as The Alibi. “The whole town is kind of freaked out right now. All the power is out, people are out walking around.”
Sandra Hall, owner of Antiques and Goodies in Eureka, said furniture fell over, nearly all her lamps broke and the handful of customers in her store got a big scare. She said it was the most dramatic quake in the 30 years the store has been open.
“It was shaking for a very long time,” Hall said.
Photo: Interior of Eureka Books (P. Scott Brown)
The quake was stealthy in Crescent City, strongly felt in some areas and unnoticed in others. Still others heard it instead of feeling it.
"It was a roller not a shaker," said Kurt Mack Harvey, a Del Norte resident for 40 years. "I'm from Southern California originally, there was no sharp shaking, just a rolling motion."
Another Del Norter, Ryan Schaffer, said, "I thought for sure it was the big one. I want to go watch for a tidal wave."
One man who wouldn't give his name was on a ladder taking down Christmas lights in Crescent City when the quake hit.
"I was at the top of my ladder, it was slippery already, and suddenly the damn thing started shaking like it needed a drink," he said. "Luckily it wasn't enough to knock me off. I wasn't even bothered till after."
Triplicate reporters Nicholas Grube and Kelley Atherton were shopping at the Target store in Eureka on Saturday.
"I felt a slight vibration on my feet," Grube said. "Then it started to shake a little harder. There was a loud boom. The lights went out. We crouched on the floor. It was still shaking. Even if we wanted to get up, I don't know if we could have."
Atherton added: "The sound of the building shaking was probably the scariest."
"You could hear yelling and screaming," Grube said. "Children were crying."
Employees urged shoppers to stay calm. As they exited, one woman who had just arrived asked if the store was closing.
"I drove all the way from Hoopa to go shopping today," she said.
Dan Bowermaster of San Francisco was with relatives in Eureka when the quake hit. He said he had been in several moderate and large quakes throughout California but had never felt anything as dramatic as this one.
“It just spiraled bigger and bigger,” Bowermaster said by phone. “It was extremely unsettling, it was shaking in kind of a circular way.”
Bowermaster said the refrigerator in his cousins' home moved 3 or 4 feet, and glassware fell off the shelves and broke. He drove across town shortly after the quake and saw many store windows destroyed.
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