[UPDATE Monday Morning] Estimated 5.4 Quake Shakes in the New Year
Earthquake track screenshot showing this morning’s estimated 5.4 quake.
At about 10:35 a.m. on New Year’s Day, an estimated 5.4 magnitude earthquake rattled North Coast residents already shook by the December 20 6.4 magnitude quake. The quake was centered near Redcrest which is about 10 miles south of Rio Dell.
We’re already hearing reports on the scanner of an injured woman and a gas line damaged.
What happened where you are?
UPDATE 10:48 a.m.: We’re hearing from one of our Redheaded Blackbelt family that Fernbridge has closed. They were turned around before they could cross it. [UPDATE: Caltrans confirmed, “Road Closure: State Route 211 at Fernbridge, Humboldt County is CLOSED. The bridge is closed while we conduct safety inspections from todays New Year’s Day earthquake…There is no estimated time when the roadway will be reopened.”
UPDATE 10:53 a.m.: One person is trapped in the bathroom on Rigby Street in Rio Dell due to Earthquake debris.
UPDATE 10:58 a.m.: Now that Fernbridge is closed for inspection by Caltrans, locals will be wanting to use Blue Slide Road in Rio Dell. Be aware that there is a slide just south of Price Creek, but one of our family is reporting they got around it. Rio Dell appears to be seriously impacted from first reports.
UPDATE 11:15 a.m.: Redwood Tsunami Work Group (you really should follow them) reports,
NO TSUNAMI THREAT: A magnitude 5.4 earthquake (preliminary magnitude) today at 10:33 AM PST located onshore 9 miles SE of Rio Del. The earthquake was not on the same fault that produced the Dec 20th M6.4 (the linear trend in the figure below), but about 10 miles south and should be considered part of that earthquake sequence. THE EARTHQUAKE WAS NOT LARGE ENOUGH AND CENTERED ON LAND SO POSED NO TSUNAMI THREAT.Add your felt observations at https://earthquake.usgs.gov/…/nc73827571/dyfi/intensity
UPDATE 11:21 a.m.: Emily Scoles, a Rio Dell resident provided us with this image. Emily is one of our most reliable and frequent sources. Send her good thoughts as she gets through this second quake.
One house in Rio Dell. The resident reports, “This quake did the opposite walls this time.” [Photo from Emily Scoles]
UPDATE 11:27 a.m.: Multiple small aftershocks have tapped the region since the 5.4 this morning.
| MAG | LOCAL DATETIME y/m/d h:m:s |
LAT deg |
LON deg |
DEPTH km |
LOCATION |
| 2.2 | 2023/01/01 11:14:28 | 40.422N | 123.974W | 21.78 | 14 km ( 9 mi) SE of Rio Dell, CA |
| 2.2 | 2023/01/01 10:55:10 | 40.431N | 123.996W | 27.67 | 12 km ( 7 mi) SE of Rio Dell, CA |
| 1.8 | 2023/01/01 10:46:18 | 40.437N | 124.007W | 24.43 | 11 km ( 7 mi) SE of Rio Dell, CA |
| 2.0 | 2023/01/01 10:43:49 | 40.434N | 124.012W | 23.85 | 11 km ( 7 mi) SE of Rio Dell, CA |
UPDATE 11:32 a.m.: One person trapped in an RV on Wildwood Avenue in Rio Dell. Multiple resources responding.
UPDATE 11:47 a.m.: Video of this morning’s 5.4 quake from Hunter Hatten.
UPDATE 12:30 p.m.: Senator Mike McGuire tweeted, “ Some structures have been damaged in Rio Dell. – The City is conducting tests of the water system. – Fernbridge is currently closed. Caltrans is inspecting the span now. – State and local authorities coordinating.”
Crack running down Monument Road after New Year’s Day 5.4 quake. [Photo from Tiffany Cherrie]
UPDATE 2 p.m.: The City of Rio Dell has blocked off part of Monument Road after a large crack was discovered.
The new crack roughly follows the dotted yellow center line.
UPDATE 2:12 p.m.: Calls reporting new water and gas leaks continue to pour into emergency services.
One woman, Monica Welch Herrera, posted a photo of her home with the bottom skirting crumpled on a Rio Dell social media page.
She asked, “Can anyone tell me if they will say it’s unsafe to live in my house because of this ?? Freaking out..”
Inspectors are going to homes and checking on the damage that resulted from today’s quake. Some residents of the December 20 quake have yet to be inspected–one told me that she had gone to the assistance center this Friday and Saturday only to be told she needed to be inspected and tagged before the agencies can help.
Quake damage on Rio Dell home. [Photo from Monica Welch Herrera]
The person who shared it with us, MaKayla Barnhart says she was actually at a friend’s house in Rio Dell when the quake hit.
“[I]t was bad,” she explained. [My son and I] were at our friends house. [H]e was playing in the other room with his friend…[When the quake hit, it] was little for a second…I got up to walk to them and then it hit…[W]e ran towards each other so fast, I knocked my son down,…grabbed him and his friend, covered them on the ground with my body as the pictures were falling off the walls next to us…[T]hen my friend got on top of me while I was on our kids.”
UPDATE 5:20 p.m.: Humboldt County Office of Emergency Services reports, “Approximately 30% of residents in the Rio Dell community are currently without water, though restoration efforts are underway…It is estimated that half of Rio Dell residents are without power following today’s aftershock.” See more at: Humboldt County OES January 1 Update on Resources Available After Recent Earthquakes
UPDATE Monday morning: Somehow we missed this yesterday but Fernbridge reopened in the late afternoon. Caltrans posted, “Route 211 at Fernbridge in Humboldt County is now open to one-way controlled traffic. Travelers should expect delays as repair work continues. Please use caution when traveling in the area.”
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I’m in Weott. Started out slow and built up in intensity really quick. No damage here
Earthquakes, floods, plagues.
The end is near!
Not if your vaccinated ?
Right fox?
There is a vaccine for floods and earthquakes?
Yes, buy it now!
I believe it entails a move to Idaho.
Rio Dell seems to be a God forshakin’ place!
George M.
You do not have to get nervous until there are plagues of frogs and boils. And even then if you have feral cats and young boys to deal with the frogs and antibiotics for the boils you should be okay. For awhile at least. To tempt fate we often catch some tadpoles and raise them in our pond because the ditch we get them from usually dries out before they grow legs. As an aside, in my youth I was prone to getting boils but Dr. Zia figured out I was allergic to vitamin A. Never had one again.
First!!
Yikes!!! Felt it here in Eureka.
4 cupboards opened only one item fell, much better this round
Where are you?
We are in the middle of Fortuna, I should have mentioned that , sorry
Hard shake in Salmon Creek, though no damage. Really feeling for those poor folks in Rio Dell, and hope this didn’t make their situation even worse.
Fernbridge goin down! In 3..2…1…
Could be downed redwoods anywhere near there. Be safe everyone.
Felt that, yes. The alert came slightly after the quake.
Same here (So Hum). Alert sightly after the shake.
I have a down vote for that comment? I must be doing something right to get a fan.
I have noticed that perfectly neutral, and even kind, comments have been down voted lately. It’s bizarre
Mine came between the start and the bigger jolt.
A little SE of Alderpoint and didn’t feel anything.
Friends out in the Ettersburg and Whitethorn areas felt it good.
My neighbor on the same parcel felt it. Not sure why I didn’t.
Felt it out huckleberry lane, whitethorne. Hanging lights were swaying east/west, it gave a jolt then mainly rolled. Didnt seem as long in duration as last one.
Willow Creek felt it!
15 minutes ago 1.8 magnitude, 24 km depth
Rio Dell, California, United States 17 minutes ago 2.0 magnitude, 23 km depth
Rio Dell, California, United States
26 minutes ago 5.4 magnitude, 27 km depth
Rio Dell, California, United States
2 hours ago 2.4 magnitude, 8 km depth
Soledad, California, United States
2 hours ago 2.1 magnitude, 17 km depth
Hydesville, California, United States
https://earthquaketrack.com/p/united-states/california/recent
Kneeling on living room floor stoking the woodstove in Eureka and it was a gentle, but strong rolling feeling. Deciding whether to dash or close stove down when it subsided.
that’ me,, give it a second or two before you decide what to do
Long roll in Eureka. Caused more cracks in fireplace. Got no alerts this time!
Rohnerville: Sharp shock, prolonged strong shaking, another sharp shock then a good long bit of roly-poly.
Same in Hydesville
Kneeland here. It was a short sharp 5 second shake reminiscent of the most recent one but a bit less violent. For me it was not rolling at all.
Our local treasure Lori Dengler has a good bit in an article about why that, and for me this, earthquake was so low on the Richter Scale but felt so much worse. It seems the Richter Scale is no the best measure anymore. A good read.
https://lostcoastoutpost.com/2022/dec/31/econews-report-californias-third-shakiest-earthqua/
A 5.4 is a good jolter, especially if you’re closer to it and on slumpy soil.
Yes the G force a more important metric to the intensity.
But the lay person is going to be more comfortable with the Richter scale.
IDK but surely this will make me think differently now. Ms. Dengler a good example of an earthquake that felt mild on land but created a huge tsunami. Before listening to her on that link, it would have too assumed a small feeling quake was not a reason for concern. I will be less so dismissive now.
& wow. I’ve talked to Lori Dengler and she is a very intelligent woman who really knows her stuff. But that article is a hard read. I think an automatic program translated audio into written form and put some strange translations in there. & then no one proof read it. I’m glad I had training in abstract expressionism, because I really needed it.
It is connected to the actual audio. I had to listen after reading to understand it completely. Dang Humboldt Co with all its false (or faults for those listening rather than reading.)
Earthquakes have always seemed cubist to me.
Was driving SB on highway 101 about 1 mile south of Rio Dell when my steering wheel yanked HARD to the left. Scared the heck out of us and then the earthquake alarm came on and we could feel the ground moving even though I was going 65 MPH. Immediately slowed and pulled over and waited a bit as I was not about to cross the Rio Dell bridge after that jolt.
I’m sure the crew working the slide on 36 didn’t appreciate this one…
If Fernbridge is closed for awhile, what is the route to 101 and how long will it take from Ferndale proper to 101?
I want our state OES to realize the true impact of the bridge closing, please locals, let us all know.
If our so hum roads like whitmore grove or the southern 101 go out, the EB junction to the Wildcat into Ferndale is our only route north, yes?
Feelin for those in Rio Dell, it takes awhile to diminish the quakeptsd. This one seemed to go the opposite way of last one.
Watch out for mudslides folks!
Out Blue Slide Rd to Rio Dell.
Be careful if you use the Blue Slide Road. It was down to one lane earlier today. You may want to call Caltrans for an update. Be safe.
Forgot to mention in my earlier comment to bring up “quickmap.dot.ca.gov” it should give you all the info you need.
We need one of thpse for county roads, i havent looked, is caltrans listing hazards/closures on local roads in that link?
To Ferndale folks, how long will it rake you to reach 101 with the bridge out&how reliable are tbose roads? Ie Bkue Slide,as its name implies,slides out a lot.
And how do we help our neighbors in Rio Dell??? Kym do you know who is rounding up donations&where?
May we all take a moment to step back, adjust our perspective and give so much thanks for a home, food, running water and power.
Many of our Humboldt family lost those things today.
You mean like this?
https://humboldtgov.org/1422/Road-Conditions
Im signed up for that, was thinking of something more like cal trans site, where you can input the road youre wanting info for.
I know we dont have enough folks on so hum county roads crew to go check roads&log it into a website.
Some winter days its good to know if snows on your road or whatever. Yes people use social media for that, but having a central spot to check that folks can input conditions to would be awesome.
Emily needs to put some earthquake straps on her cabinets and anchor them to the wall, especially if she has kids.
I have all my bookcases tethered. They can be easily detached for moving or cleaning. I also have child proof latches on any cabinets that are less often opened to protect glasses and dishes. I admit I have not anchored my electronics- tv or monitors- but the one that bothers me the most is the wood stove. The idea of a hot stove with a fire going on rocking off the hearth does worry me but I can’t figure a way to do it. Anyway there are plenty of earthquake fixes at various hardware store cheap. It’s easy and worth doing.
If your stove has feet it’s possible that someone careful with the right kind of drill coule drill holes in them then bolt them to the tile & floor or whatever. Or you could put sort of a U joint over them – something shaped like a pipe fastener – over them and bolt those. If there are 4 of them the feet won’t shift out of them.
Yes they do make bolts that expand after putting them in.
Expansion anchors.
Definitely bolt your wood stove down and make sure your insert is well-secured. We have had a Lopi Answer, mobile-home version, for over 30 years and it has come through numerous ‘quakes. Mounted on a pedestal that is bolted down. Air is drawn through the pedestal, through the floor, from outside. This avoids pulling cold air through the walls to feed the fire. We love it. On a remodel or new construction, take a hard look at this strategy. The house and lives you save may be your own. I do not sell stoves.
Redway, felt like a high 4+ here. Alert came after it.
Looks like it was fairly impressive in Rio Dell.
I finally turned off the USGS ShakeAlert messages. They lock up my phone and add more confusion to an already stressful situation. If I followed their advice I’d still be ducking and covering.
Doesn’t lock up mine. I wonder why it does yours? Maybe it’s the settings on your notices?
Shook the equipment in the county yard across from my house but no damage here!!
In Fortuna. Quake started with a sharp rattle, then big sway. I was thinking, OMG what is it going to do? Twenty minutes later, my old wind up clock is bonging the hour. I hadn’t started it for years! How weird the quake started it. Somehow I like it.
Wahoo for a little earthquake magic. Made me smile in the midst of the stress.
Quake got the pendulum swinging? I think winding the spring offers little nudges to keep the pendulum going longer. The pendulum swing runs the clockworks. Still magic. It’s running on earthquake power.
Felt it in Kneeland!
Water heater fail in Scotia residence. Ensuing water damage.
Again, earthquake straps. After every quake people say they’ll strap things down but then it gets put down on the list until another shaker happens. It’s a never ending cycle.
I have straps on miy heater here in southern cutten. The 6.4 caused the output line to separate at the top of the heater. So…straps are good at keeping the tank from falling over, which would be far worse.
Our new water heater was strapped in by the plumbers last year; they didn’t even ask. As is proper.
Actually, as is code.
At your place?
Kym, not my place. A neighbor of a friend. Both live in Scotia.
Light shaking here in north Arcata, woke me up. By the time I went outside it was over
I live at Eel Rock in So. HUMBOLDT. I was in the pasture with my Border Collies and sheep. First time in my 80 years I saw a quake on the ground beneath me and saw it move my legs.
Then, as the alarms on my iPhone and watch were warning me of a quake, suddenly, I heard and saw the metal roof on the barn lifting and, then, dropping back into place. The sheep ran to hide in their barn and the border collie I was working was happy to “load up” in the side by side.
Whoa, that made the hair stand up on my head!
Glad you are OK and the dogs, too.
I see a wave traveling across the ground.
So scary but so cool.
Way better than putting up with tornadoes!
at least ya know a tornado is coming
Felt it in elk river. Yikes, more rolling than jerky like the other one.
I feel very sorry for Emily Scoles being hit twice by earthquakes, and the rest of the folks in Rio Dell, Scotia, Ferndale and so on. I am not sure what is going on with Mother Nature, but she is really upset. Fernbridge is closed again by Caltrans and no scheduled reopening. The Blue Slide Road is down to one lane only. I pray this shaken and rolling comes to a close soon.
In Garberville, I was outside with feet on soil. It was a few seconds of sharp motion, a few seconds of gentle rolling and then a low gentle shake trailing off for 20 seconds or so. Prayers to folks around Rio Dell, Stafford & Redcrest.
Shelter Cove certainly felt it. Quite a shake and long.
We were outside walking up Hawks Hill Rd near Loleta when we felt the quake and immediately, I got the alarm about the quake. We backed away from the bull pines and the swaying power line. It was like riding a Bongo Board. The quake made it easier for the people out counting birds for the New Year’s Day Bird Count, as all the birds flew into the air at once.
My Eureka neighbor was walking on Clam Beach with his dog near Little River at the time of the jolt. He said he did not feel it. I was in Eureka near Henderson Center when it struck. The motion seemed more gentle and had a shorter duration than the 12/20/2022 quake.
Way to kick a city when it’s down. >:-(
I was driving on Grizzly Bluff Rd and had just made the comment that the truck seemed to be driving a lot rougher than usual when I got the phone alert. Amazingly the road became much smoother after the alert!
Mckinleyville felt a decent shake. A power pole fell down out here near the Airport. Killed power for most of the immediate area. The power just came back on around 6:30pm
Looking at Emily’s living room picture made me realize how lucky we are to have flat screen TVs. In the 1994 Northridge earthquake our 32” Sony TV, which weighed over 100 lbs flew 12’ across our bedroom and landed on me. I was awake goading myself into getting up at the time.
California, should change it’s moto from the golden state to the shaking state.