Alaska coast hit by 8.2 magnitude earthquake, no tsunami risk for B.C.

A massive earthquake rocked some parts of Alaska late Wednesday night.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the earthquake was a magnitude 8.2, hitting just off the Alaska Peninsula, southeast of Perryville and southwest of Kodiak, at a depth of 32 kilometres — which is considered to be shallow.

It struck just after 11 p.m. PT and occurred along the Aleutian chain — an area that has seen many quakes in the past.

“You have this subduction zone, it’s 1,000 miles long, and there have been quite a number of quakes of large size that have occurred there in the past,” explained Randy Baldwin, a USGS geophysicist.

An image from the U.S. Geological Survey shows where an earthquake hit off the coast of the Alaska Peninsula late Wednesday, July 28. (Courtesy USGS)

Tsunami warnings had been issued for much of the Alaska coastline, but have since been cancelled. Advisories were originally put in place for South Alaska, the Alaska Peninsula, and the Aleutian Islands, according to various media reports.

“Remember, strong and unusual currents may continue for several hours. If you have damage, please report it to your local officials,” wrote the U.S. National Tsunami Warning Center hours after the earthquake struck.

Emergency Info B.C. confirmed early Wednesday there was no tsunami risk to British Columbia as a result of the magnitude 8.2 quake.

Earthquake Canada seismologist Taimi Mulder says it takes about six hours for a wave from Alaska to make it to Vancouver. She admits given its size and location, the earthquake did have the potential to generate a tsunami. However, she was able to tell early on that the wave propagation was low for B.C.’s coast.

“Just because there’s an earthquake off shore doesn’t mean there’s going to be a tsunami. First of all, it has to be a very large earthquake, magnitude seven or above. One doesn’t really know how big the wave might be until it is measured at wave height stations around the world, which are monitoring for this very reason,” she said Thursday morning.

Mulder explains how big a tsunami is depends on a number of factors, including how much plates move.

She tells NEWS 1130 seismologists, including herself, kept a close eye on the situation in the moments and hours after the earthquake hit near Alaska.

Responding to questions about the time it took between the earthquake itself and B.C.’s emergency management team identifying no risk to the province’s coastal regions, Mulder says British Columbians should know someone is always keeping a close eye on the situation.

She says the provincial emergency program monitors websites continuously, and the Tsunami Warning Centre sends out bulletins and watches when a seismic event such as Wednesday’s takes place.

“The provincial emergency program works 24/7, and I know they always have a duty officer on who is monitoring these things,” she explained. “In the situation that there would be a tsunami at our coastline, they would alert the media … and they’re all set up to issue notice to people.”

B.C.’s Alert Ready system, which sends a notification out on compatible mobile devices, radio, and TV, should also be triggered if there was a real tsunami threat.

The earthquake and ensuing tsunami risk in parts of Alaska forced some communities to order residents to seek higher ground.

According to the Alaska Earthquake Centre, the shaker was “felt throughout the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak.”

The city of Kodiak was among communities impacted by evacuation orders, with police urging locals to get to a local high school that was higher up.

According to the National Tsunami Warning Centre, a wave measuring less than 30 centimetres high was generated by the seismic activity.

No damage has been reported as a result of the tremblor, but Baldwin is not expecting anything major.

“The estimated loses or fatalities would be probably minimal, if there were any at all,” he added.

-With files from The Canadian Press

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