5.6 earthquake rocks Potter Valley to Redwood Valley- FBPD says no damage reported so far- power out in Willits, line down
At 8:11 a.m., the dogs barked first — a frantic high pitched warning — and then Nixie came seconds after the dogs and then the house began to rock and roll in a long, rolling wave. A 5.6 earthquake on the Richter scale (initial estimate) struck near Redwood Valley, sending a sharp jolt through Mendocino County and a ripple of reports across the coast. Please email us at frankhartzell@gmail with specifics of what you felt. The quake lasted about 5 seconds and was followed by several smaller aftershocks.
The dog barking came 10 seconds before the quake. The Nixie 5 seconds before. I never believed the animal warning stuff for sure till now.
A powerline fell in Willits and there were 12 separate outages affecting about 4500 people, PGE reportd
Within minutes, the MCN Listserve lit up with posts from Westport, Cleone, Caspar, Comptche, Little River, and the town of Mendocino, all describing the same sudden, unmistakable shake. Some felt a single hard jolt; others reported a rolling motion that seemed to move under the floorboards.
“Felt in Manchester near Hwy 1, initial bump and then a roll. No pics askew
nor windows rattling, but my 100-year-old bungalow creaked and groaned a
bit.” Beverly Smith repoted on the LIstserve.
The earthquake registered 5.6 on the Richter scale, but the Richter scale is very flawed.
The Richter scale doesn’t tell the whole story because it only measures the maximum amplitude of seismic waves at specific frequencies from a single type of seismograph. It ignores the total physical energy released, duration, local geological conditions, and how the earthquake’s shaking is experienced by buildings and people – from Wikipedia.
Jim Heid reported to us
“My KZYX radio partner lives in Redwood Valley. He wrote to me:
“the whole house shifted back-and-forth about a foot and a half, stuff fell off the walls and shelves, but everything held together, no apparent damage, water, and electricity still working OK.”
Carol Lillis gave a specific report on how it felt.
“We felt quite a jolt in Albion. Our house is about 50 feet from the edge of a bluff and our glass doors rattled so hard I thought they would shatter. I held on tight to the kitchen counter. Our home is built on rock and that was quite a bounce.”
There were 2500 outages in Willits, PGE reported and 1500 more in unincorporated areas.
Friend Bill Kubran in Redwood Valley 8 miles from the epicenter. The shaking was dramatic for 5 seconds but nothing even fell off the shelves. “it felt like the house moved 5 or 6 feet back and forth and it lasted a long time, maybe 5 or 6 seconds,” Kubran said.
A friend in Okie Valley, closer to the epicenter, had damage from falling items.
There were no tsunami warnings
No damage estimates yet, though residents are checking chimneys, shelves, and older structures. This is the kind of quake that reminds the North Coast exactly where it sits — on the restless edge of the continent, where three tectonic plates meet and argue beneath our feet.
Please check back. We will be updating this story throughout the morning as more information becomes available from USGS, Cal OES, and local emergency officials.
What is the fault involved?
The Maacama Fault is a right lateral-moving (dextral) geologic fault located in the Coast Ranges of northwestern California. It is considered to be the northernmost segment of the Hayward Fault subsystem of the San Andreas Fault zone. Creep along the Maacama is about 8 mm per year, consistent with the steady movement along the rest of the Hayward Fault system. It is also capable of producing large earthquakes.[1][2]
The Maacama Fault runs just east of Ukiah and just west of Willits.
We didnt get much from the county but the city gave info early on.
City of Fort Bragg Police Dept ·
“We are aware of the earthquake and are actively monitoring the situation. At this time, no damage has been reported within the City of Fort Bragg. If you are injured or have an emergency call 911.
For the latest updates, emergency information, and preparedness resources, please visit Mendocino County’s emergency preparedness website at mendoready.org.
We encourage everyone to stay informed, be prepared, and follow official sources for accurate information.”
Useful info from Jim Heid
Go here and fill out the questionnaire. If you received the early warning on your phone, complete the optional portion at the very end of the page.
https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/nc75382936/tellus
Learn more about the “Did You Feel It?” program:
https://earthquake.usgs.gov/data/dyfi/background.php
Reporting your earthquake experience on the USGS Did You Feel It? <https://www.usgs.gov/tools/did-you-feel-it> (DYFI) website provides critical crowdsourced data that scientists, emergency responders, and communities rely on. [1 <https://earthquake.alaska.edu/why-should-you-bother-did-you-feel-it-report>, 2 <https://www.saskoer.ca/geolmanual/chapter/overview-of-earthquakes/>, 3 <https://phys.org/news/2026-01-earthquake-crowdsourcing-tool.html>]
Here is how your reports directly create value:
Fills Instrumentation Gaps: In many areas—especially outside of California—seismic instruments are sparse. Public reports provide the only localized data about ground motion and intensity in these gaps.[1 <https://earthquake.usgs.gov/data/dyfi/faq.php>, 2 <https://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs030-01/>, 3 <https://cusec.org/did-you-feel-it/>]
Improves Emergency Response: DYFI data feeds into ShakeMap <https://earthquake.usgs.gov/data/dyfi/> and the PAGER <https://earthquake.usgs.gov/data/pager/faq.php> system, which estimate the severity of shaking and potential economic losses or casualties. Agencies like FEMA use this to decide where to direct rescue resources and aid. [1 <https://www.preventionweb.net/news/did-you-feel-it-expanding-use-earthquake-crowdsourcing-tool>]
