The earthquake struck approximately 35 miles off the northern California coast.
Credit: USGS

No damage was reported Thursday afternoon as a result of a 5.9 magnitude earthquake that struck off the shore of Northern California Thursday. The U.S. Geological Society recorded the earthquake at 12:20 PST, its epicenter about 35 miles from Petrolia.

According to Jim Goltz, earthquake and tsunami program manager for the California Emergency Management Agency, the quake was likely an late aftershock from a 6.5 magnitude earthquake that hit near Eureka, CA on Jan. 9. The January quake caused approximately $40 million in damages.

According to Officer Paul Diaz of the Ferndale Police Department, located about 15 miles from Petrolia, no damage had been reported. He described it as “more of a rolling quake, not a jolting one like the one in January.”

Brenda Godsey, public information officer for the Eureka Sherriff’s Department said she "was in Eureka which is about 45 miles north. It (the quake) was a rolling sensation that lasted 20 to 25 seconds.”

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