Northern California Dodges Major Damage In 6.5 Quake

EUREKA – Residents of one Northern California county are cleaning up after a 6.5 magnitude offshore earthquake shook the area Saturday.

Fortunately, the people of Humboldt County escaped with little more than bumps, cuts and broken glass.

Entrances to Eureka’s Bayshore Mall were blocked Sunday as engineers surveyed for damage.

Authorities say area bridges suffered some bent rails, and local stores are reporting messy aisles where bottles and jars flew from shelves and shattered.

The temblor — centered in the Pacific about 22 miles west of Ferndale — caused only limited structural damage, a few hours of power outage and no major injuries.

Officials say the fact that agencies and residents were earthquake-ready helped avert destruction and panic, and sped along the recovery.