Earthquake Offshore California Knocks Out Power for Thousands

A strong 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of northern California on Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey said, leaving thousands without power.

The earthquake, which struck at 2:34 a.m. (1034 GMT), was about 10 miles (16.1 km) deep, USGS said, and struck about 7.4 (12 km) west-southwest of Ferndale, California, a Humboldt County town about a four-hour drive north of San Francisco.

Local media and others on social media reported there were numerous gas leaks, powerlines down, and at least one structure fire in Ferndale. A representative from the Humboldt Sheriff's Office was not immediately available for comment.

Local media reported that the California highway patrol was responding to reports of cracks in the Ferndale bridge over the Eel River in and out of Ferndale.

"That earthquake was insane," said Twitter user Jimmy Eller, who said he lived in Humboldt County. "A good 15-20 seconds of shaking."

Caroline Titus, the editor and  publisher of The Ferndale Enterprise, posted video on Twitter of toppled furniture and household items scattered on the floor.

"Sorry for dark video. Power still out," Titus tweeted.

More than 64,000 homes and businesses were without power early Tuesday in Ferndale and surrounding Humboldt County, according to the electric grid tracking website Poweroutageus.com. Ferndale is home to about 15,000 people and 261 miles (420 km) north of San Francisco and just south of Eureka.

The California Independent System Operator, which oversees much of the state's electrical grid, issued a transmission emergency notice for the area following the earthquake.

There was no risk of a tsunami, the U.S. tsunami warning system said.

 (Reuters - Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta and Akriti Sharma in Bengaluru; editing by Ed Osmond, Susan Heavey, Donna Bryson and Chizu Nomiyama)