Natural disaster rattles Alaska this weekend

There were no reports of injuries or severe property damage.

The quake struck at about 1:30 a.m. Alaska time and was centered 53 miles west of Anchor Point in the Kenai Peninsula, which is about 160 miles southwest of Anchorage, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Two smaller earthquakes – a 4.0 and a 3.2 – struck within 30 minutes after the first one.

The epicenter was some 80 km deep near Cook Inlet, about 260 km southwest of Anchorage, the largest city in the northernmost USA state, where some residents were awakened by the shaking of the ground lasting 30 to 45 seconds.

A dozen homes in Kenai were evacuated because of the possibility of gas leaks.

A neighborhood along Lilac Lane at the north end of town was evacuated by 3 a.m. and residents spent the day at an emergency shelter set up at the Kenai National Guard Armory.

Sandahl says all firefighters and utility workers were accounted for, and there’s been no reports of injury.

An natural disaster of magnitude 7.1 struck the south central parts of Alaska knocking off items from the walls and shelves.

“They’re different fault systems, there’s not a direct link”, said Cassidy.

The Southern part of Alaska is very well instrumented since this kind of earthquakes are usually expected here.

The Fairbanks agency reported a series of aftershocks reaching magnitudes of up to 4.7, though Merz said even larger tremors could follow. “It felt like the house moved”, said Barta, who is married to an Associated Press reporter.

Of the nearly 23,000 Alaskans who power their homes through Homer Electric Association, nearly 5,000 are without power Sunday after the quake. “It was unsettling. Some things got knocked over, but there was no damage”. “The TV we were watching fell over, stuff fell off the walls”, he said.

A DOT spokesperson says no damages were found to bridges on the Kenai Peninsula, Anchorage or Matanuska-Susitna areas.

Bruce Shelley with ASD maintenance said 12 teams of two to three people are combing the district looking for any structural damage.