An earthquake of magnitude 7.5 in Alaska prompted a tsunami warning on Monday, AP reported. The warning, however, was downgraded to an advisory just over two hours after the quake hit.
The quake was centered near Sand Point, a city of about 900 people off the Alaska Peninsula where wave levels topped two feet, according to the National Tsunami Warning Center. The quake was recorded at a depth of 30 km.
The quake was felt widely in communities along the southern coast, including Sand Point, Chignik, Unalaska and the Kenai Peninsula. The Alaska Earthquake Center said an aftershock of magnitude 5.2 was reported 11 minutes later, centered roughly in the same area.
The National Tsunami Warning Center in Palmer, Alaska, said the tsunami warning was in effect for roughly 1,529 km, from 64 km southeast of Homer to Unimak Pass, about 129 km northeast of Unalaska.
Scott Langley from the National Tsunami Warning Center said the earthquake sent two waves, each measuring 130 cm (4 feet, 3 inches) high, according to CNN. But observers onshore reported the waves appeared to be 1.5 feet (45.7 cm) and 2 feet (61 cm) over high tide.
“It was a pretty good shaker here,” said David Adams, co-manager of Marine View Bed and Breakfast in Sand Point. “You could see the water kind of shaking and shimmering during the quake. Our truck was swaying big time.”
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