7.5 earthquake in Alaska

Earthquake leads to tsunami warning for Alaska and Canada

Magnitude 7.5 quake early Saturday prompts warnings, evacuations and 'a bit of panic' but 'no reports of any injuries'

the Guardian,

5 January, 2012

A powerful earthquake sparked a tsunami warning for hundreds of miles of Alaskan and Canadian coastline in the early hours of Saturday morning, but the alert was canceled when no damaging waves were generated.

The magnitude 7.5 quake and the tsunami warning that followed caused concern in some coastal communities, with alarms sounding and people rushing to higher ground for safety. But the Alaska Tsunami Warning Center (ATWC) later said the waves were too small to pose a threat, reaching just six inches above normal sea level in places such as Sitka and Port Alexander.

"Initially, in the first 15 to 20 minutes, there might have been a bit of panic," said Sitka police chief Sheldon Schmitt. But he said things calmed down as the town waited for the all clear.

The tremor struck at midnight Friday and was centered about 60 miles west of Craig, Alaska, the US Geological Survey said.

"Houses shook; mine had things tossed from [the] wall," said the Craig police chief, Robert Ely. But he added that there were "no reports of any injuries, no wave, no tidal movement seen".

The tsunami warning was eventually expanded to include coastal areas from Cape Fairweather, Alaska, to the northern tip of Vancouver Island, Canada – an area extending more than 700 miles. The ATWC had warned that "significant widespread inundation of land is expected", adding that dangerous coastal flooding was possible.

In its cancellation statement, the center said that some areas were seeing just small sea level changes. "A tsunami was generated during this event but no longer poses a threat," the center said.

The Alaska Earthquake Information Center said the quake was widely felt but it received no reports of any damage.

"It was the most intense earthquake I've felt in my 10 years here. I'm pretty sure there was stuff falling off of shelves," Schmitt said. "There is no report of any wave activity here." He said that an evacuation sirens and announcements came shortly after the quake, prompting the temporary rush to higher ground.

Some people in Craig also moved to safer territory.

"Several citizens elected on their own to move to higher ground. Several locations in Craig were set up for staging [and] shelter," said Chief Ely, adding that "no evacuation was ordered".

A tsunami warning means an area is likely to be hit by a wave, while an advisory means there may be strong currents, but that widespread inundation is not expected to occur.

(Major) Earthquakes list January 5, 2012 – Massive earthquake in Alaska

SRC	Location	UTC Date/time	M	D	INFORMATION
ER	I Felt A (not Listed) Strong Earthquake	Jan 05 23:59 PM	4.6	0.1	MAP	I Felt It
GEOFON	Off East Coast Of Honshu, Japan	Jan 05 20:45 PM	4.7	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Off East Coast Of Honshu, Japan	Jan 05 20:45 PM	4.7	2.0	MAP	I Felt It
GEOFON	Mauritius/reunion Region	Jan 05 17:42 PM	5.1	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Mauritius - Reunion Region	Jan 05 17:42 PM	5.1	20.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Mauritius - Reunion Region	Jan 05 17:42 PM	5.1	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Hindu Kush Region, Afghanistan	Jan 05 14:04 PM	4.8	5.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Western Xizang	Jan 05 13:41 PM	4.8	27.0	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Western Xizang	Jan 05 13:41 PM	4.8	2.0	MAP	I Felt It
GEOFON	Xizang	Jan 05 13:41 PM	4.7	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 12:28 PM	5.1	5.0	MAP	I Felt It
GEOFON	Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 12:28 PM	5.1	14.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 12:28 PM	5.1	9.8	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 12:28 PM	5.4	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
WCATWC	75 Miles Nw Of Dixon Entrance Alaska	Jan 05 12:28 PM	5.4	9.0	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Offshore Coquimbo, Chile	Jan 05 12:08 PM	4.9	2.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Offshore Coquimbo, Chile	Jan 05 12:08 PM	4.9	9.4	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 10:11 AM	4.8	2.0	MAP	I Felt It
GEOFON	Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 10:11 AM	5.1	9.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Off The Coast Of Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 10:11 AM	4.8	7.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Off The Coast Of Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 10:11 AM	4.8	7.0	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Off Coast Of Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 09:27 AM	4.7	2.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Off The Coast Of Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 09:27 AM	4.7	9.9	MAP	I Felt It
PTWC	Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 09:06 AM	7.7	5.0	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 08:58 AM	7.5	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 08:58 AM	7.5	9.8	MAP	I Felt It
GEOFON	Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 08:58 AM	7.5	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Southeastern Alaska	Jan 05 08:58 AM	7.7	5.0	MAP	I Felt I
EMSC	Iran-pakistan Border Region	Jan 05 05:58 AM	4.7	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
GEOFON	Southern Iran	Jan 05 05:58 AM	4.7	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Off The Coast Of Pakistan	Jan 05 05:58 AM	4.6	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Hindu Kush Region, Afghanistan	Jan 05 04:32 AM	4.8	112.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Hindu Kush Region, Afghanistan	Jan 05 04:32 AM	4.8	113.9	MAP	I Felt It
GEOFON	Hindu Kush Region, Afghanistan	Jan 05 04:32 AM	5.0	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Unimak Island Region, Alaska	Jan 05 04:14 AM	4.9	20.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Ryukyu Islands, Japan	Jan 05 04:11 AM	5.4	39.1	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Ryukyu Islands, Japan	Jan 05 04:11 AM	5.4	40.0	MAP	I Felt It
GEOFON	Ryukyu Islands, Japan	Jan 05 04:11 AM	5.3	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
EMSC	Mid-indian Ridge	Jan 05 04:00 AM	5.1	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
GEOFON	Mid Indian Ridge	Jan 05 04:00 AM	5.1	10.0	MAP	I Felt It
USGS	Mid-indian Ridge	Jan 05 04:00 AM	5.1	10.0	MAP	I Felt It