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California quake causes little insured damage: Modeler

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BOSTON—A moderate earthquake that struck Saturday off the coast of northern California caused little insured damage, catastrophe risk modeler AIR Worldwide Corp. said Monday.

According to Boston-based AIR, the magnitude 6.5 quake with an epicenter 27 miles west of Ferndale, Calif., broke windows and cut power to more than 25,000 households.

“Little structural damage has been reported and only minor injuries occurred,” AIR said in a statement.

“Residential construction in the affected region is dominated by wood frame, as is Ferndale's historic downtown,” AIR said of the California quake. “There is one report of a wood frame house in Eureka having been knocked off its foundation; otherwise, the bulk of the damage seems to have been limited to nonstructural elements and contents.”

The modeler further noted that “earthquake insurance penetration, particularly for residential properties, remains low in California. That, and the fact that the quake occurred along a relatively sparsely populated stretch of California, will limit insured losses from this event.”