7.9 Earthquake in Alaska, West Coast Tsunami Warning Canceled

This is a breaking story and will be updated. Check back for new information…

Update (7:48 a.m. ET):

The U.S. National Tsunami Warning Center canceled a west coast warning for the U.S., following a magnitude 7.9 earthquake off the coast of Alaska near small city of Kodiak. The warning it remains in effect for some local areas, after it issued one in the early morning hours following a large earthquake beneath the Gulf of Alaska.

Earlier:

The Anchorage Daily News reported:

The quake woke people up in Anchorage, more than 350 miles from the epicenter, and was felt throughout much of the state, including as far away as Fairbanks.

One Kodiak man, Eric Cusson, said hundreds of cars had driven up Pillar Mountain, the site of the town’s utility-scale wind turbines.

“Pretty much everyone in town went up Pillar Mountain,” he said.

One of Cusson’s friends said the Coast Guard appeared to have evacuated all the aircraft from their local base, which is on the waterfront.

“She saw all the C-130s and all the helicopters take off,” he said.

By 2:20 a.m., though, people were still awaiting the arrival of a tsunami, Cusson added.

“So far, no waves,” he said.

On Twitter:

The Latest: Police: No wave reported amid tsunami warning. https://t.co/gOUGkLopXY

— The Associated Press (@AP) January 23, 2018

Reposted with permission from our media associate Common Dreams.