A Northern California earthquake rattled Mendocino County on Wednesday morning, knocking out power to thousands of residents, sending merchandise tumbling off store shelves, and leaving some people with injuries. The magnitude 5.6 tremor struck early in the day and was felt across a wide stretch of the region.

What Happened and Where

The quake hit at 8:10 a.m., initially registering on the ShakeAlert system as a magnitude 6.0 event near Willits. Many residents received an automatic warning on their phones moments before or during the shaking.

By 8:16 a.m., the U.S. Geological Survey had revised the magnitude down to 5.6. The epicenter was pinpointed roughly 6.8 miles north of Redwood Valley, at a relatively shallow depth of about five miles. Shallow quakes like this one tend to be felt more strongly at the surface.

Injuries and Damage

The Mendocino County Executive Office confirmed that some injuries were reported, though there were no deaths and no known major structural damage.

Still, the shaking left its mark in places:

• Video from a home in Willits showed items knocked out of cabinets and scattered across the floor.
• Stores reported goods thrown from shelves.
• At the Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery near the epicenter, no one was hurt, but many objects toppled over.

The city of Willits said it had not received reports of injuries or damage to its infrastructure. Even so, emergency crews stayed busy, dealing with downed power lines, checking for possible gas leaks, and responding to reports of broken water mains.

Power Outages Across the County

PG&E reported that roughly 10,000 customers in Mendocino County lost electricity after the quake. By 4 p.m., crews had restored power to about half of those affected.

The utility said none of its facilities, gas systems, or generating assets sustained damage. Officials urged residents to stay off major roads so that Caltrans, PG&E, and county workers could carry out inspections and repairs without interference.

A Rare Event for the Region

What makes this quake notable is its size relative to the area’s history. According to veteran California seismologist Lucy Jones, it was the strongest earthquake to hit the region in nearly nine decades, especially striking given that the area doesn’t sit on a major fault line.

Jones noted that while the region isn’t free of earthquakes, they’re usually much smaller than this one. She expects aftershocks to follow but believes they’ll likely remain on the milder side. A handful of smaller aftershocks were indeed reported following the main tremor.

Felt Far and Wide

The shaking reached well beyond the epicenter, with reports pouring in from across Northern California:

• A caller from Stockton watched the weights on his grandfather clock sway back and forth.
• A viewer reported their lights shaking.
• A 10-year-old in Vacaville said water sloshed out of her pool.
• Residents in Arden-Arcade felt the shaking, with one describing water spilling from their apartment pool.
• Stan’s Cafe in Ukiah felt the quake but escaped any damage.

Even inside the KCRA 3 television studio, monitors could be seen slightly trembling as the quake rolled through.

Official Response

Governor Gavin Newsom’s office said it was aware of the earthquake and coordinating closely with emergency officials to assess potential impacts and damage. The state noted that nearly 657,000 earthquake alerts were sent out through the MyShake app, a reminder of how far early-warning technology has come.

The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office began assessing damage in the aftermath, while Cal Fire’s Howard Forest Emergency Command Center reported no damage as of the latest update.

For now, the region is settling back to normal as crews continue inspections and residents brace for the possibility of minor aftershocks in the days ahead. Anyone in the affected area is encouraged to check their homes for hidden damage, particularly to gas lines and water connections, and to follow guidance from local emergency officials.