Humboldt, a county in northern California hit by a 6.5-magnitude earthquake Saturday, survived the disaster pretty well with only one major injury reported so far, authorities said on Sunday.
The quake struck off the coast of northern California at about 4:27 p.m. Saturday (0027 GMT Sunday), and was centered at about 47 km from
Eureka, a city in Humboldt County, which lies about 400 km north of San Francisco, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Dozens of people came to local hospitals for emergency care after the quake but their injuries were all minor except for one person who suffered a broken hip, Humboldt County Administrative Officer Phillip Smith-Hanes told a press conference in Eureka, reported Times-Standard, a daily newspaper headquartered in the city.
"On the whole, I think we dodged a bullet," California State Assemblyman Wesley Chesbro told the press conference. "It could have been far, far worse."
Eureka Fire Chief Eric Smith said his department has received 119 reports of damage, and preliminary assessment put the damage to public and private structures within the city at about 12.5 million U.S. dollars.
No such estimates were now available for Humboldt County as a whole, officials said.
As authorities continue to count the damages, life is starting to return to normal on Sunday in the quake-hit area with power restored and some businesses reopening.
Jana Morris, a spokeswoman for Pacific Gas and Electric Co., which serves the area, said that a peak of 36,000 customers were without power
Saturday night but by 6 a.m. (1400 GMT) Sunday, power had been restored to all but two customers.
Some businesses in Eureka also begun to open back up on Sunday, local media reported.