A robust earthquake shook elements of Northern California early on Tuesday, reducing off energy to 1000’s and inflicting harm to buildings and roads.

Two accidents have been reported after the magnitude 6.4 earthquake occurred at 2.34am close to Ferndale, a small neighborhood about 210 miles (345 kilometres) northwest of San Francisco and near the Pacific coast.

The epicentre was simply offshore at a depth of about 10 miles (16 kilometres). Numerous aftershocks adopted.

The Humboldt County Office of Emergency Services initially tweeted that there have been experiences of “widespread damages to roads and homes,” however authorities subsequently indicated that harm was lower than what may be anticipated from the dimensions of the quake.

Two accidents have been reported however each individuals have been anticipated to get better, county sheriff’s info specialist Samantha Karges mentioned.

No fatalities have been instantly reported, mentioned Brian Ferguson, a spokesperson for the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.

There is “some damage” to buildings and infrastructure, and two hospitals within the space misplaced energy and have been operating on mills, however the scale of the harm seemed to be “minimal”, he mentioned.

Authorities closed a bridge in Ferndale that was exhibiting harm. The state freeway division tweeted a photograph exhibiting crumpled pavement.

Some gasoline leaks have been additionally reported and greater than 70,000 prospects misplaced energy within the space, in line with poweroutage.us.

No tsunami was anticipated, the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office tweeted.

The county of 136,000 residents is in a area of the state that has a protracted historical past of enormous earthquakes, together with a magnitude 7.0 in 1980 and a 6.8 in 2014, in line with the California Earthquake Authority.

A metropolis of Eureka resident Dan Dixon, 40, mentioned he and his spouse have been sleeping when it jolted them awake and shook every little thing, throwing photos of their house to the bottom.

“It was probably the most violent earthquake we have felt in the 15 years I have lived here,” he mentioned. “It physically moved our bed.”

The quake triggered the West Coast’s warning system that detects the beginning of a quake and sends alerts to cellphones within the affected area that may give individuals discover to take security precautions earlier than robust shaking reaches them.

About 270,000 individuals acquired notifications early Tuesday, mentioned Mr Ferguson, the Cal OES spokesperson.

The earthquake got here simply days after a small magnitude 3.6 earthquake struck the San Francisco Bay Area, inflicting minor harm.

That earthquake was centered in El Cerrito, about 16 miles (25-kilometres) from San Francisco.