Earthquake in Northern California destroys thousands of dollars in store merchandise
A 5.6-magnitude earthquake that shook Northern California early Wednesday morning sent bottles and other merchandise flying off store shelves, new videos show.
The earthquake struck in Mendocino County, about 7 miles north of Redwood Valley and east of Willits, at 8:10 a.m., officials said.
Dramatic video from Upper Lake Grocery in Upper Lake captured the moment the quake struck, sending wine bottles crashing to the floor and leaving spilled liquid and broken glass strewn across the aisles.
One store owner reported thousands of dollars in damage after products were thrown off the shelves, ABC7 reported.
Redwood Valley Market employee Cesar Perez told the San Francisco Chronicle that the earthquake caused “a lot of damage, especially in the food section.”
Residents also reported dishwashers opening on their own, drawers flying out and dishes and plates cracking during the powerful tremors.
Some pictures from stores in Willits showed aisles filled with merchandise as businesses dealt with the effects of the earthquake.
Many grocery stores were temporarily closed while crews assessed the damage.
Officials say no injuries have been reported.
A release from the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office said no major damage was known despite widespread disruption.
The tremors were felt beyond the scene, with reports of tremors in parts of the Bay Area, including Sonoma, Walnut Creek and as far south as San Jose.
The outage affected thousands of customers across the community, according to PG&E’s outage map, and some residents also experienced water service interruptions.
Many Californians received a ShakeAlert notification on their phones after the earthquake, warning of a 6.0 tremor in Mendocino County.
The warning was issued before the magnitude of the earthquake was revised to 5.6.
The US Geological Survey said about 80,000 people experienced moderate to strong tremors, while about 10 million people felt weak from mild tremors.
Seismologists later identified this event as the most likely shock in a sequence of 44 earthquakes.
According to the USGS, there is a 77% chance that at least one earthquake of magnitude 3.0 or greater will hit the area within the next week.
More than a dozen earthquakes had been recorded on Wednesday, most below magnitude 2.5.
