Deadly earthquake kills two, disrupts power in California

Two people were killed and at least a dozen others injured when a powerful magnitude 6.4 earthquake rocked the extreme northern coast of California.

The earthquake crumpled homes and roads, ruptured utility lines and left thousands of residents without running water and electricity.

Details of casualties were sketchy. The two fatalities involved individuals, one aged 72, the other 83, who suffered medical emergencies that coincided with the quake, preventing rescue teams from reaching them in time to render life-saving care, said Humboldt County Sheriff William Honsal.

The tremor, which struck at 2:30 a.m. PST on Tuesday and was followed by about 80 aftershocks, was centered 215 miles (350 km) north of San Francisco offshore of Humboldt County.

Some 79,000 homes and businesses countywide were without power in the quake’s immediate aftermath, according to the electric grid tracking website PowerOutage.us.

Water service to the entire community was knocked out, and City Manager Kyle Knopp said he expected 100 to 150 residents would likely end up displaced once housing inspectors had assessed all the structural damage there.

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Fire officials said dispatchers fielded roughly 70 emergency calls after the quake.

Police closed a bridge over the Eel River just outside Ferndale, a picturesque town notable for its gingerbread-style Victorian storefronts and homes, after four large cracks were discovered in the span.

Authorities reported at least four Humboldt County roads shut down due to earthquake damage.

California’s earthquake early warning system sent electronic alerts to the mobile devices of some 3 million northern California residents 10 seconds before the first shaking was even felt, said state emergency chief Mark Ghilarducci.

While earthquakes are routine in California, tremors at a magnitude 6.4 are less common and potentially dangerous.

Zainab Sa’id