ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A lightly populated stretch of Alaska’s southern coast was under a tsunami warning Wednesday after a strong earthquake was felt throughout the region, and officials in the Pacific Northwest were evaluating whether there was any threat to coastlines there.
The U.S. Geological Survey described it as a magnitude 7.3.
The U.S. Tsunami Center said the warning was in effect from about 40 miles (64.4 km) southwest of Homer to Unimak Pass, a distance of about 700 miles. Among the larger communities in the area is Kodiak, population 5,200.
The first waves were projected to hit the village of Sand Point, a community of about 580 people on Popof Island, in the Aleutian chain.
Major quake triggers tsunami warning
In Unalaska, a fishing community of about 4,100, officials also urged people to move at least 50 feet above sea level, 1 mile (1.6 km) inland. In King Cove, which has about 870 residents on the south side of the Alaska Peninsula, officials sent an alert calling on those in the coastal area to move to higher ground.
The Washington Emergency Management Division said on X that it was still examining exactly what the tsunami warning means for Washington state coastlines and that it was in contact with the National Tsunami Warning Center.
