Magnitude 7.0 earthquake causes damage, cuts power. Tsunami warning canceled for California
A 7.0 magnitude earthquake off of the California coast sent trembles Thursday morning throughout Northern California that uprooted homes from their foundations and cut power for thousands as a threat of a tsunami forced evacuations on the coast and parts of the Bay Area, authorities said.
The National Weather Service around 11 a.m. issued a tsunami warning for the entire Northern California coast, through the San Francisco Bay Area, and into Oregon. The warning was canceled just before noon.
The quake, recorded at 10:47 a.m., rattled parts of Humboldt County, Senate Pro Tem leader Mike McGuire said in a social media post. It was initially measured at a magnitude of 6.6 but the figure was revised minutes later by the Geological Survey. The Geological Survey mapped the earthquake’s epicenter as about 39 miles west of Petrolia. It is southwest of Eureka.
McGuire added that 10,000 customers suffered blackouts in Humboldt County.
“There are reports of some homes that have come off of foundations in the greater Eel River Valley region of Humboldt County,” McGuire said on social media.
Residents of Crescent City were ordered to evacuate, McGuire said in an update just before 11:15 a.m.
“All residents should head to higher ground immediately and follow local OES and Sheriff Office instructions,” McGuire wrote. Crescent City, in Del Norte County near the northwestern corner of California, has a population of about 6,700 people.
Humboldt County emergency officials told people in coastal areas to evacuate immediately, before lifting all evacuation advisories around 12:10 p.m. after the tsunami warning was canceled.
The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office said an evacuation warning was in place for the Mendocino Coast area, urging those in low areas and along the harbor should be ready to evacuate on short notice. The warning was also downgraded shortly after noon.
The Berkeley Police Department briefly issued an evacuation order for a stretch of the western part of the city, along the San Francisco Bay. It has been lifted.
The Geological Survey midday Thursday named the earthquake: “2024 Offshore Cape Mendocino, California Earthquake.”
The tsunami alert, before it was canceled, forecast that waves were expected to reach the coast in San Francisco around 12:10 p.m.
The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services advised that the tsunami warning was in place from Douglas, Oregon, down through Davenport, California, which is about 10 miles northwest of Santa Cruz.
Gov. Gavin Newsom has been briefed on the earthquake and is meeting with state emergency officials, according to a social media post. The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services will help with the response, according to the post to X.
The Geological Survey also reported temblors near the Lake County community of Cobb, including a 5.8 magnitude earthquake centered in nearby Sonoma County, less than five minutes after the larger quake.
Shocks spread through to downtown Sacramento and could be felt in high-rise buildings along Capitol Mall.
Margie Monson, the property manager for BMO Tower, noted that everyone was OK as the building swaying and creaked.
“It was one of the biggest ones that I felt in Sacramento,” Monson said.
This story was originally published December 5, 2024 at 2:10 PM with the headline "Magnitude 7.0 earthquake causes damage, cuts power. Tsunami warning canceled for California."
