Cleaning up after earthquakes has become December tradition in Ferndale
For people in the community of Ferndale in Humboldt County, cleaning up from a significant earthquake in December has seemingly become a tradition in recent years.
Thursday's magnitude 7.0 was the latest to strike the area around the holidays.
"I was looking up at the ceiling and it was like it was made of jelly," Rayah Sanchez explained. "And then when I finally came to, I saw the tiles on the floor, and honestly, I didn't remember that they were there. I thought they came from the ceiling."
Sanchez was working at The Farmer Daughter when the quake struck, and by the time it was over, yes, there was a mess.
"Oh yeah, the floor was covered in glass," she said. "Covered. And we have a lot of condiments and stuff so it was glass and goo mixed everywhere."
Cameras captured the scene and Sanchez feared the worst.
"The ceiling looked like jelly," Sanchez said. "And if this was an empty room, it probably wouldn't have been as scary, but because of all the glass breaking it almost felt bigger, but it was yeah it was really scary."
Despite the massive shaking, only a few tiles fell from the walls. The minimal damage allowed the store to stay open all day.
"Well you remember the last one," said Merritt Brodt.
The last one was when CBS News first met Brodt, when she was cleaning up the same establishment back in December 2022.
"Well I think the other one, remember it was like the largest G force," Brodt said of 2022. "One of the largest shakers in California. This was like being on a boat."
"Yeah it was a bouncer, for sure," Bob said of the Thursday quake. "Here, in Ferndale, it hits from the west, it comes this way. It always hits this wall."
Bob was cleaning up his blacksmith shop, where he says he might have actually fared a little worse than the 2022 quake.
"I lost a window," he said of the damage, "I lost numerous glass tops on the cases. I lost a couple table tops."
"This had a door laying here, and a broken chair," said Jenny Oaks of the Victorian Inn. "But we'll get the door fixed."
Oaks had cleaned up the inn by afternoon, but for a quake this strong there was very little mess, and that's because they were ready for this.
"Yes, we are," she said. "That piece of furniture is bolted to the wall. But the soaps flew off the counter."
Over at Valley Lumber, owner Troy Land was inside when he felt the earth move under him.
"What did I feel," Land said. "A lot of shaking, it started shaking and it shook hard."
He's lived through lots of earthquakes that did more damage despite the strong number here.
"And if it gets to a seven, you're booking," Land said. "Nobody gets hurt, no buildings fell down, it's just a mess so yeah, pretty fortunate."
After three significant earthquakes in December of 2021, 2022 and now this year, even the Christmas trees are cabled to the wall now. Residents had some thoughts about the holiday hat trick.
"Yeah, I've heard that from a lot of people," Oaks laughed. "But it's a great place to live. Most of the time."
"Definitely," Bob added. "I'm like, 'So this is what we're doing now every December?' Like, this is our jam now."
"If this had happened on the same exact date as those two years," Rayah said."I probably would move."
