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More injuries reported as Northern California continues to recover from magnitude 6.4 earthquake The total number of people injured in the deadly magnitude 6.4 earthquake that rocked Northern California rose to 17 Wednesday afternoon as recovery efforts continued in the area, local officials said. The earthquake, which hit California's Humboldt County at 2:34 a.m. Tuesday, killed two people, severely damaged buildings and cut power to more than 70,000 customers. By Wednesday evening, Pacific Gas & Electric had restored power to most customers. According to the PG&E crash map, as of 5:26 p.m. PST, only 23 customers remain in the dark. The earthquake was the strongest in the area in recent years. Due to widespread damage in the county, Humboldt County Sheriff William Honsal declared a state of emergency Tuesday evening. California Governor Gavin Newsom has declared a state of emergency to support the emergency response. The quake struck just off the Pacific coast of California near Ferndale, a small community about 210 miles northwest of San Francisco. The epicenter of the earthquake was close to the coast at a depth of about 10 miles. The USGS reported on Tuesday that the region has been hit by earthquakes more than once. "This area is the most seismically active part of California," Keith Knudsen, associate director of the USGS Earthquake Center, said in a press release. Earthquake in the USA: A magnitude 5.4 earthquake hit West Texas, one of the strongest in the state on record; So far no casualties One of the strongest earthquakes in the history of Texas occurred on Friday evening in the western region of the state, where oil production and hydraulic fracturing are underway. There were no immediate reports of damage or injury. The US Geological Survey said the 5.4 magnitude quake struck at 5:35 pm local time. Its center was about 14 miles (22 km) north-northwest of the Midland and it was about 5.6 miles (9 km) deep. The service previously issued a provisional magnitude of 5.3 before updating it. Meanwhile, the National Weather Service's Midland office tweeted that this "would be the 4th worst quake in Texas history!" Geophysicist Jana Pursley of the USGS National Earthquake Information Center in Colorado said more than 1,500 people felt the quake from Amarillo and Abilene in Texas to Carlsbad, New York, accoding to early reports received by the agency “This is a massive earthquake for this region,” Pursley said, adding: “In this region, an event like this would be felt for a couple of hundred miles.” A less intense aftershock soon followed the quake, and Pursley said there could be more shocks of decreasing magnitude in the future. “I have not received any information about damage, but plaster or driveways near the epicenter may crack,” she added. An earthquake of similar magnitude hit western Texas last month. This quake had a magnitude of 5.3 and was centered about 95 miles (153 km) west of the Midlands. South Carolina. The USGS provides scenarios for estimating the likelihood of larger earthquakes as part of an ongoing swarm in the region. earthquake of magnitude 3.3. The strongest earthquake to date occurre with a magnitude of 3.6. A "swarm" of earthquakes refers to a long sequence of earthquakes in which there is no apparent primary shock or main shock, as opposed to an aftershock sequence where a strong main shock is followed by a decaying sequence of (mostly) smaller earthquakes. Flocks can support an increased frequency of earthquakes from a few days to many months. It is generally impossible to predict how long an ongoing swarm will last before it dies out, and it is impossible to predict the strength of the strongest earthquake in a sequence. Small scattered earthquakes have periodically occurred in this area, but none of them have been particularly strong. The strongest earthquake within 50 miles (80 km) occurred in 1913 in Union County, when a magnitude 5.5 quake struck about 90 km northwest of the recent quakes. As a result of this earthquake, brick and stone buildings were damaged, chimneys were destroyed and furniture in houses was moved. The most destructive earthquake in South Carolina's history was the 1886 magnitude 7.0 Charleston earthquake, located about 87 miles (140 km) southeast of this current swarm. During an earthquake swarm, the frequency of earthquakes increases, and the likelihood of larger earthquakes increases accordingly. Many smaller earthquakes have also been recorded in the area - some of them are still strong enough to be felt. The frequency of small earthquakes makes it possible to estimate the probability of larger earthquakes. The USGS offers scenarios based on the assumption that the frequency of smaller earthquakes remains roughly the same over the next month.