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Subscribe to RSSA 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Alaska near midnight on Friday, the U.S. Geological Survey said, prompting tsunami warnings and advisories down the coast of Alaska and Canada's British Columbia.
All tsunami warnings, watches and advisories were later canceled, the West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center (of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) said.
The Alaska Tsunami Warning Center 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," Sitka Police Chief Sheldon Schmitt told The Associated Press. But he said things calmed down as the town waited for the all clear and the tsunami warning was canceled by 2 a.m., according to the Daily Sitka Sentinel.
Residents of Sitka gathered at the high school early Saturday, bundled up with pillows in tow, waiting for more information.
The quake struck in the Pacific Ocean about 60 miles southwest of Port Alexander, Alaska, at a depth of about 6 miles at 11:58 p.m. local time (3:58 a.m. ET), the USGS said.
Initially, the USGS reported that the temblor had a magnitude of 7.7, but it later downgraded the quake's strength to 7.5.
Read real-time updates from BreakingNews.com
A 6-inch rise in sea level was reported in Port Alexander, but there were no early reports of damage.
A tsunami warning was issued for the coastal areas of British Columbia from the north tip of Vancouver Island to Cape Suckling, but it was later canceled.
"A tsunami was generated by this event but does not pose a threat to these areas," NOAA said in a statement. "Some areas may see small sea level changes. The decision to re-occupy hazard zones must be made by local authorities."
The NOAA also issued tsunami advisories from the Washington state-British Columbia border to the north tip of Vancouver Island. They were later canceled.
According to the NOAA, a tsunami warning means "that a tsunami with significant widespread inundation is expected or is already occurring."
There was no danger of a tsunami hitting Hawaii, according to the NOAA's Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.
The Associated Press contributed reporting.
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Wow, heres hoping no one is hurt or worse. Or any damage. There are a lot of people who live on the coast this part of the world.
Don't worry. Sarah already alarmed everyone hours ago. She saw it coming..she can see Russia from her house remember?
If I could've made a bet, I'd be a wealthy woman right now.
Hope the warnings turn out to be just warnings with no casualties.
They've already canceled most warnings and downgraded the quake. I think it's just "BREAKING NEWS" so we'll click on the big red banner and read all about it. Alaska is one of the most active quake areas on earth (if not THE most).
who is sarah palin? get a life man. you are like hollywood recycling old movie plots...expect you recycle old MSM political points. i would bet my house that sarah palin is smarter that both of us. afterall, she is wealthier.
Right..because wealthy = genius. I don't know how much your house is worth..but I would have to advise against betting it on Sarah Palin's smarts.
Dude, get a life! So sorry that Sarah threatens you so badly
Having seen The Impossible last night, I would not wish that on anyone. The movie was good, a miracle indeed...but could do without her screaming...
Good Morning Chef!!
FamousAmos, according to your logic Palin is dumb, but how do you explain Sarah Palin being successful, popular, pretty, and wealthy. I think you're logically dumb and to prove my point... What the hell does Palin have to do with this story?
Let me get this straight, you think that POPULARITY, GOOD LOOKS, AND MONEY have ANYTHING to do with being intelligent, and I'm the dumb one? Sheeeesh. I give up. You guys win.
And since I have to actually point it out to you "serious folk", it was a JOKE. Get a sense of humor.
Just saying. At her age (48) I would think those qualities, would qualify her as being smart. Most would just retire and not care.
That's like saying that your high school head cheerleader (whom I'm assuming was probably quite pretty, and quite popular), was a genius. Have you heard some of the freaking things that have come out of that woman's mouth? Talk about scary.
Why is Palin wealthy? Because she wrote 2 books about her home life, her run for VP, along with crap like speeches, sermons and bits about people she admires. And the Cons ate it right up. Plus she travels around doing speaking engagements and charging $100,000 each.
None of that required any great amount of intelligence. It's her celebrity status that made her the $12 mill she's worth. Nothing more.
She was Governor of AK and a 86% approval rating. She and her husband have owned and run a fishing business. She cleaned out the corruption and garbage politicians from Ak government. She orchestrated a way for ALL citizens of AK to share in the profits of the oil resources drilled from their State. Every year, they all, from birth to death get a yearly PFD check. I'd say she's damn smart. And we could use her to do the same exterminating in this White House.
aggie
Yea, she quit.
That was being done before she was even heard of.
But back on topic. I hope all in Alaska are safe.
MSNBC news writer: Please include a MAP of the place. Q: WHERE? with reference to Alaskan cities/towns.
You gotta include a map. Do not argue this one away, people.
this is a w-e-a-t-h-e-r article....take your political stupidity and fears over to first read and join F.R.'s sheeple
Well said Aggie. However, there are times she can be the Joe Bden of the Republican party.
Most of these people here never heard of Alaska before Alaska State Troopers.
I hope it doesn't kick start Yellowstone I don't have enough supplies yet..
Alaska has 30,000 miles of coastline, more than the rest of the continental states combined, ( Hawaii isn't a continental state). Thus Alaska is very close to Russia at the Diomede Islands, and very far from Russia at Ketchikan. It's like saying Georgia is very close to Florida, but very far from California, but you're talking about the same country.
Sara Palin gained her wealth from un-wealthy people giving their hard earned money to her Sara-pac. Even though, she had two books published, she and fox bought most of them and could not even give all of them away. Remember when she was at a book signing and got up and walked away and left all of those people standing, with books purchased, waiting for her signature, which they never got. Sara did not gain wealth from intelligance. She gained her wealth from being a corrupt politician.
"It's her celebrity status that made her the $12 mill she's worth. Nothing more."
Well, she was smart enough get herself elected gov. of one of the most environmentally sensitive states in the US and the run for vice prez of the US. Which one of the names on the ballot was yours?
She sure is no Mother Teresa, she lay's with greed and power.
It was about time for that part of the Pacific shelf to move. The other parts of the ring already have. Maybe CA and WA were spared.....
God damn frackers! Dont argue with me, its science!
I am surprised that the Tsunami Warning Center cancelled the alert. They like to milk these warnings for everything they can. Just asked anyone that has to pay through the nose for flood insurance because they are now living in a "Tsunami Zone" area that hasn't had one in over 300 years.
An earthquake is weather?
When I lived in Anchorage, several bars had an "earthquake bell." If the bell rang on its own, the next round of drinks (within reason) were free. I don't know if they have them anymore.
it won't hit hawii...his arrogance is on vacation there...he'll issued a executive order no tsunami...then proceed to throw money at it...
closer then politics AG.
Sometimes I wonder about people. And then I read responses to articles like these and I have the answers. So I guess you complainers would rather them just not say anything about major earthquakes and just ignore tsunami possibilities? Ahh, who will miss all the people who would drown if there is a tsunami? Let's just ignore all natural occurrences and let all the people die...hey, because heaven forbid a warning or prediction would be any off or the rest of the disaster might not be so bad as they say it MIGHT be.
Grow up, please, you who whine about warnings or announcements. Next time just ignore it and if you get swept away you will be happier, apparently. They are doing their jobs, and if you don't like that then don't read articles on the subject. Announcing a 7.7 or 7.5 is breaking news and putting out a tsunami warning or watch IS a good thing if there is a possibility. Just because you personally don't want to know doesn't mean others don't want to know. You know, there might be others who live in a given area who DO want to know, and I can hear your complaining now if they didn't announce or warn and it turned out that lives could have been saved. It's not just about you, complainers. It's about all of us and keeping people safe.
Glad they put out the warning as well. Living in California we tend to pay attention to quakes. Thankfully I live inland far enough from a tsunami. But I also have family in Seattle and other parts of Washington. When a 7.5 hits it can also be a trigger for other Quakes along the Rim. Hope all is well up there.
@ Aggie-345886
Sara Palin had absolutely nothing to do with the PFD, where the hell did you get your information from?. Unless she worked with Jay Hammond in 1976 at the age of twelve, Sara had nothing to do with the PFD. Also she was so smart that she gave 500 million to trans Canada to do a pipeline feasibility study (AGIA). NO she is not the sharpest knife in the world, but what got her elected in Wasilla and later To Governor was both timing and that men were attracted to her. Nothing more.
i'd listen to sara...if she could do this...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcM14Al83Ls
Only on this site could an earthquake morph into a political discussion.
Chris from Yucaipa said
Why is Palin wealthy? Because she wrote 2 books about her home life, her run for VP, along with crap like speeches, sermons and bits about people she admires. And the Cons ate it right up. Plus she travels around doing speaking engagements and charging $100,000 each.
None of that required any great amount of intelligence. It's her celebrity status that made her the $12 mill she's worth. Nothing more.
Do I detect a hint of jealousy in your rant? If you'd like to be worth something why don't you get off your worthless lazy liberal ass and make it happen instead of sucking on the govmt tit? Cake boy.
Gee, is everyone surprised, what happens if you take all the water out of a water filled ballon? Yep that ballon is planet earth, and people wonder why so many earth quakes ...... To funny. And whats more funny is the Oil companies and our Government both know but don't care as long as money is being made so I guess the joke is on us all.
Gee, I wonder if that means that there never were any earth quakes before man started pumping oil?
Is it me, or does it sesem like there's been more natural phenomenon such as this occurring these last few years? Two serious hurricanes in the New York metropolitan region two years in a row, there was an earthquake that shook the east coast from DC up through Mass. in the summer of 2011 etc. etc. etc......what the hell's going on eh?
There's earthquakes all the time....we're just hearing about them more in the news.
Thank goodness we have such a warning system available.With modern technology in place, gone are the days when sudden death struck so many countless men,women and children around the world without any means to warn a single person. Though deaths still occur in many places, the number of lives spared is incredibly lower then ever before. However much progress still remains for many third world countries.
This is the site for the world's tracking system of earthquakes, available 24/7 for anyone interested in following the activities in their area or anywhere on earth. http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/station.php?network=IU&station=COLA. it includes actual photos where available of the instruments locations in their environments.Quite fascinating for some.
Man may still suffer from floods,earthquakes, fires, tornadoes,tsunami and other disasters, while at the mercy of Mother Nature's unpredictability. But he is not completely left defenseless to take measures against what is coming anymore. I pray people will be able to take the right steps in preparations for anything which might result in this latest earthquake.That none will be harmed from this event.
All the preparations in the world though, don't help, if people ignore warnings in the end. Believing themselves capable of handling whatever nature can dish out.Ultimately that false sense of confidence can cost precious lives in the end.
Tell that story to the people of Thailand,,,,or Japan,what are you saying???
Just toss Palin in a volcano as a peace offering. Shoot, that won't work, probably make things worse.
I worry about quakes in the winter when many people could lose power and natural gas pipelines break. If your house is still OK you would need a fireplace. I suppose urban areas would have generators for heat but how long can they run? My son and his family live in the Seattle area, and he just finished "earthquake proofing" his 100 yr old home so that he could appy for EQ insurance, which he did, and now has. He and his adorable family live in a "liquification zone"--deeply disturbing.
I also worry about quakes but I am getting more concerned about people like Laffy Taffy and Famous Amos being so fixated on Sarah Palin that they insert her into any article. She is over and out of the picture since the 2008 election. Get over her and if you can't please get professional help then maybe we can really talk about things that matter like a quake and a possible tsunami warnings. I have relatives in Alaska and hope they are all well. Sounds like things have quieted down so hope everyone is out of danger.
Katherine M.
MOVE! Problem solved.
Laffy Taffy
Wow you are really on a downer. Sorry your New Year has started off so bad that you are taking it out on people that just have concerns over the safety of their family. I presume this means you live where there are no dangers from earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanoes or any other danger Mother Nature can unleash. If you have found that utopia then keep it secret or all those you recommend move will be on your door step. I really hope your year gets better so you can stop picking on everyone.
I find it hilarious that some are so programmed by ideologic BS that they have to rant on Palin when the read the word "Alaska!"
Laffy taffy-Sofa King Stupid. Check your Brain psi. I think you might be low on air.
"Windancersong-1494878
Thank goodness we have such a warning system available.With modern technology in place, gone are the days when sudden death struck so many countless men,women and children around the world without any means to warn a single person"
Actually in this case if there had been one it wouldn't have helped much. At only 60 miles away and traveling up to 500 mph they would have all been on the streets being sweep away.
But yeah its a good thing, sometimes.
Seems the Eastern Pacific rim has been shaking alot from South America all the way up to Alaska.
Another reason that whole part of the world is part of the "Ring of Fire".
Great, now I have Johnny Cash stuck in my head.
Thx famous amos, now I do to thx to your comment....
i fell into a burning ring of fire...i went down down down...and the flame grew higher....down down down...that ring of fire...
Too bad these people can't read a map.. Looks more like off the British Colombian coast of Canada to me..
roadrunner0
When you do look at a map you will see that running along the coast there 600+ miles south of the interior of Alaska are many islands that are all part of that state.
Goodness, I so hope nothing else happens and the Ocean stays quiet.
whos it going to tell?
We were discussing the recent activity of the ring of fire in Geology. Absolutely loved the class.
I'm glad this struck off coast, and so far no real reports of damage. Unfortunately, we have had a very calm period here. It's just typical of mother nature to start up every now and again. Be prepared.
I just watched the movie, "The Impossible." About the Thai tsunami. Those people had no warning.
i just watched the movie "ice age continental drift"....this is all my hero skrat's doing.
My son lives in Sitka, he called about an hour ago, the Tsunami sirens are going off, he and his family had to get in his truck and get to higher ground.. Sitka is a small island right on the ocean - winds are picking up; so praying they don't get the Tsunami waves .. he said his house rocked and rolled pretty good!
Sandy ... keeps us updated how is your family doing? ... how close are they to Vancouver Island?
Map of impacted area: #!/photo.php?fbid=10151160532936666&set=a.110963346665.107721.108536136665&type=1&theater
Hope there is no damage as no State can depend was the Congressional House for help. Over 77 days and counting with no help for Sandy vicims. A cryin shame!
The cryin' shame is anyone expects help from the government. A hurricane hitting the coast is not a disaster. Those inthe path of Sandy are not victims.
fpechris ... a portion of the money that the Republicans refused to vote on was to pay federal flood insurance claims. That is, to fulfill a contractual obligation where property owners paid premiums in good faith. The Republicans love to proclaim fiscal responsibility, but I don't see how refusing to pay your legal obligations is being responsibility. Its just like the debt ceiling (which pays for spending ALREADY approved by Congress) and the GOP willingness to allow the country to default. Is this how they run their personal affairs? A bank would have to be crazy to lend money to a Republican member of the house since they apparently don't believe in honoring contracts.
Blaming republicans for disaster relief. I remember Bush getting all the blame for Katrina response. Where is the blame for Owebama with regards to Sandy? Can't have it both ways democrats.
I'm not sure what Obama is to be blamed for. Some people felt that FEMA was a little slow, but unlike with Katrina, FEMA did start moving right away. After Katrina, the head of homeland security had the gall to claim that they didn't know that there was a major problem in New Orleans because things didn't look that bad on TV! And, when Obama visited, he didn't tell the head of FEMA that he was doing a "heck of a job."
"fpechris
A hurricane hitting the coast is not a disaster. Those inthe path of Sandy are not victims."
You're an idiot.
"Blaming republicans for disaster relief. I remember Bush getting all the blame for Katrina response. Where is the blame for Owebama with regards to Sandy? Can't have it both ways democrats."
Because its the House that is dragging their feet and its controlled by the repubs. Please try to keep up.
Hell you don't even know the Presidents name.
This just shows once again that people are far to dependent on the Federal Government.. This is what they want, no independent thought or self reliance.. Since none of them can stop spending money like a drunken teenager with dads credit card there is no solution.. Every battle in Washington is surrounded by wasteful spending from all parties..
He may be your Communist in Chief but may people in the US have no respect for the junior Senator from Illinois.. Promoting Socialist schemes that buy votes from the millions of dependent entitled poor who worship him like a king when in all actuality he is just another slick politician..
Creepy, I was just watching a documentary on youtube about the Indonesian Tsunami which wiped out almost a quarter of a million people, and then hours later this is announced. Some crazy coincidences happen sometimes. Hope that the warning fizzles out. No need to kick off 2013 with a devastating natural disaster.
It is 7.5 Richter scale earthquake. Keep yourself informed upto the minute with this quake and others. Go to http://www.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usc000ejqv#summary Hopefully evrything will turn out o.k.
We're here in Kenai Alaska and if not for Google we wouldn't have known this occurred. None of the news networks have anything on the TV 1.5 hours after the quake. Google linked us to this article so many thanks to Google, we can always count on you.
I'm a Homeroid, and nothing was felt here. Thankfully the Tsunami Warning has been lifted (at least here).
KTUU and GCI cable have been airing tsunami warnings about every 15-20 minutes since it hit. Warning has been terminated for areas north/west of Yakutat.
We (here in Japan) had a 7.9 less than a month ago generate a "tsunami warning." Nothing came of it. While a 7.anything is a serious mess to deal with, I don't think (rather I hope not) anything's going to happen. While they issue a warning, it doesn't mean it's 100%, more like 80% chance of it happening. Let's watch and wait over the next hour or so.
Think of it this way: in the Midwest, during a severe thunderstorm, when the NOAA sees something that looks like it could spawn a tornado, they skip the "tornado watch" and go straight to a "warning," even though "conditions are favorable (the true definition of a watch)," it's one of those better safe than sorry types of things.
We're heading into a a so-called "new norm" of sorts here on the Pacific rim; the Ring of Fire ain't play'n around. It's been like this since the Earth was created. The good news is, maybe with this "new norm," governments and scientists on the Pacific (including here in Japan and the United States) can devise a system that can track possible stresses along the fault.
Since this was only 3 miles deep, there is, understandably, concern.
The quake struck in the Pacific Ocean about 60 miles southwest of Port Alexander, Alaska, at a depth of about 6 miles at 11:58 p.m. local time (3:58 a.m. ET), the USGS said.
Surfs Up!
Why did it take so long for this info to hit the news? Took over an hour and still hasn,t hit CNN
You'd probably bitch if they put it out too fast without enough details anyway. Besides its kind of a non story since no wave was generated and it was out to sea.
how is this story just now posting on my msn page, been 2 days ago!!
I was awake listening to a Lawrence Krauss interview and felt the entire long, rolling quake. My car was moving back and forth as I waited outside for things to settle down.
The first wave hit about 50 miles west of me (at 00:45), but fortunately it appears insignificant.
Not sure how other coastal towns are doing, webcams are dark at Sitka's airport. I'm thinking boats will be ripped from their moorings in some harbors, but who knows.
Apparently someone must have sacrificed a blemished animal to Yahweh (again).
An atheist listening to Lawrence Krauss in his car during an earthquake ...
Now that cannot be coincidence... :-)
That is a sign from God oh ye of little faith. Don't you see, the earthquake was meant for you, yes for you. God is telling you to shut off Krauss for he the Satan's messenger, don't you see ...
Repent or the next earthquake will open a hole to hell and you will fall in...
LOL
Well I hope all will be ok for the people around the coast. Darn HARP system goofs again
It's spelled HAARP, which is not a real phenomenon. On the other hand, EMP is real and could potentially do a lot of damage.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_pulse
Maybe the Mayans were right after all,
God speed to all in the way of this thing if it does show its ugly face.
How scary! Be safe everyone.
Surfs up
The last thing we need with this Shell drill rig floating rogue against the rocks untethered is ANY wakes from a tsunami today. The Coast Guard doesn't need any more hazards while trying to rescue this rig from causing another spill crisis in these pristine waters.
Great.....another waste of taxpayer dollars- the US Geological Survey. Who needs them? I'd rather just get my surfboard, chase the animals uphill and wait for the wave. More lazy socialists, who would rather play with rocks than work, so they can perpetuate Obama's Islam-unist conspiracy of lies about carbon dating.....and like, tree rings, and stuff.........LOL.......sorry, just practicing for my new job at Fox News. Seriously, hope everyone is OK....and if you see the animals running up into the mountains.....well, you know the drill.....
Queue the Looney Tunes melody.
You news people just wake up?????,this is old news and happened 3 hours before you posted it online,geeezzzzzz
You people bitch they put out news too fast then you bitch it takes a few hours. Hey start your own news service and see how fast you can get the news out.
The comments coming from MSNBC's viewers are the reason why Fox blows this network our of the water. Their viewers bizarrely use the earthquake as a way to bash Sarah Palin. Not exactly a intelligent group of people. MSNBC could learn one thing though. If they ran Burger King and Torgan ads all day they would target the the age group that still watches MSNBC.
Riddle us this.
SO the comments made at the FOX site about their articles are better?
Oh, that's right, FOX stopped allowing people to comment on their articles. I find it ironic that you can't even praise FOX on their site and have to go to their competitor to do so.
Jersey Shore in its prime had more viewers than FOX. Does that mean it offered more intelligent information than FOX?
Just because a program is more popular than another, doesn't mean it's of any value, or that any real information can be extracted from it.
If you want the whole story, not the leftist spun version of it, you will go to FOX. MSNBC, CNN, and the major networks are much more likely run it through the liberal, politically correct filters to avoid telling the truth about Obama and left.
And that's the truth, as Edith Ann would say.
Dumb Fux News, for morons every where. Makes perfect sense that Sarah is their queen.
Sarah watched the Flintstones on FOX. Where do you think she came up with the idea that humans lived at the same time that dinosaurs lived.
How about the grounded drilling ship?
Sat. am 1/5/13 The Shell Oil Ocean Drilling Platform is Grounded & taking in Sea Water. Some of the on-board doors have been breached by the terrible 40 ft High Seas. Old Harbor,Alaska near Kodiak Island.
NO DIESEL FUEL,OIL OR GASOLINE HAS BEEN SPILLED SO FAR.
MOST IMPORTANT NO DEATHS OR SERIOUS INJURIES.
Once again Our UNITED STATES COAST GUARD STATION KODIAK,ALASKA saves the Day !
WE LOVE OUR "COASTIES" here in ALASKA.
Shell Oil is attempting to get this thing Off of the Rocks before the Alaska Weather rips this platform to pieces. & YES Shell Oil is Doing everything possible. Unlike Exxon & B P Shell can be Trusted.
SPW in Soldotna,Alaska
I guess since Westboro Church isn't here yet I'll say it for them. GOD HATES SARAH PALIN. This is happening becasue Sarah must repent or she will go to hell. GOD HATES HER.
You seriously need to seek help.