Magnitude-5.2 quake shakes county

A 5.2 magnitude earthquake occurred Wednesday afternoon at the Mendocino Triple Junction just eight miles west of Petrolia, the same region where another quake took place last week.

The earthquake began at 3:08 p.m., shaking parts of Humboldt County for several seconds.

U.S. Geological Survey places the earthquake 36 miles southwest of Fortuna.

Local geological expert Lori Dengler said Wednesday early magnitude estimates are preliminary and more accurate information emerges later.

“At this point, it looks like it is moderately deep for our area,” Dengler said. “We get earthquakes as shallow as a couple miles. This one is 18 miles beneath the surface. As I am telling everybody, just because we have a virus giving us problems does not mean that Mother Nature is going to sleep.”

A 5.8 magnitude earthquake occurred at the same junction last week and was similarly felt throughout Humboldt County, though Wednesday’s quake felt stronger, even though it was at a weaker scale.

“(Last week’s 5.8 quake) was pretty far offshore,” Dengler said. “This one was right at the coast. That can account for the difference.”

The county would feel three aftershock events in the hours following Wednesday’s quake, the strongest being a 2.4 magnitude shake at 7:51 p.m.

There was no damage reported after the earthquake, Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Samantha Karges said Wednesday. There is also no reported tsunami threat from the quake.

According to the USGS, nearly 1,800 people reported feeling the quake. Areas it was strongest were in Fortuna and the Eureka area. But some reported feeling shaking as far as Brookings, Oregon, to the north, Ukiah to the south and Redding to the east.

To report whether you felt the quake, go to the USGS link at https://earthquake.usgs. gov/earthquakes/eventpage/ nc73355700/tellus.