A 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck off the western coast of southeastern Alaska with an epicenter 58 miles west of Craig and 203 miles south of Juneau. According to the United States Geological Survey, the quake had a depth of 6.1 miles.
The initial magnitude of this temblor was 7.7 but it was downgraded by the USGS. A tsunami warning was issued following the quake and was later cancelled. According to Accuweather.com, a tsunami wave was reported on the Hawaiian Island of Maui with a height of 2.5 feet above sea level. This was the largest wave reported from this earthquake.
There were no initial damage reports from this large quake and no reports of injury.
This earthquake occurred near the plate boundary between the Pacific and the North American plates. The seismic activity of this quake occurred due to strike-slip faulting where the two plates meet. In simpler terms, the two plates are sliding past each other, creating the seismic activity.
Alaska is a seismically active region. According to the USGS, the same area of Saturday's quake has seen at least eight magnitude 6 or greater quakes in the last 40 years and in 1949, an 8.1 magnitude quake rattled the area to the southeast of the January 5, 2013 quake. Most recently, a 7.8 magnitude quake occurred in October, 2012 about 330 kilometers southeast of the January 5 quake.
Alaska was the site of the largest earthquake recorded in the United States. A 9.2 magnitude quake struck the Prince William Sound region, east of Anchorage, in March, 1964. This quake created a tsunami and in total, left 128 people dead. Damage estimates were at $311 million in property loss with Anchorage sustaining major property damage.
Get in touch with Emergency Preparedness Examiner Tammy Lee Morris at tammyleemorris@gmail.com.
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