Alaska hit by 7.9 earthquake

A powerful earthquake struck off an island in the Gulf of Alaska, prompting a tsunami threat that sent the state’s residents along the southern coast and western Canada fleeing for higher ground just after midnight Tuesday.

Section:Gallery

Tue., Jan. 23, 2018

Brennan Caton, center, Misty Lawson and Courtney Caton, right, listen to the coast guard radio inside their home for updates on the tsunami warnings that shook Tofino, British Columbia, after the Alaskan earthquake on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. A tsunami warning issued for coastal British Columbia was canceled Tuesday morning after some people living along parts of the province's coast evacuated to higher ground when a powerful earthquake struck off Alaska.

Melissa Renwick The Canadian Press
A van backs down the road as Tofino, British Columbia, residents and visitors flood out of the community center after the tsunami warning ends, on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. A tsunami warning issued for coastal British Columbia was canceled Tuesday morning after people living along parts of the province's coast evacuated to higher ground when a powerful earthquake struck off Alaska.

Melissa Renwick The Canadian Press
Jan Knutson, left, and her husband Ed Hutchinson, center, and a man at about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, wait for the all-clear at Homer High School during a tsunami alert for Homer, Alaska. The city of Homer issued an evacuation order for low-lying areas shortly after an earthquake hit.

Michael Armstrong Homer News
Abdulai Salam and his daughter Mina at about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, wait for the all-clear at Homer High School during a tsunami alert for Homer, Alaska. The city of Homer issued an evacuation order for low-lying areas shortly after an earthquake hit.

Michael Armstrong Homer News
Tofino residents and visitors leave the community center after the tsunami warning ends, on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, in Tofino, British Columbia. A tsunami warning issued for coastal British Columbia was canceled Tuesday morning after people living along parts of the province's coast evacuated to higher ground when a powerful earthquake struck off Alaska.

Melissa Renwick The Canadian Press
Anna Dale and her dog Poppy at about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, wait for the all-clear at Homer High School during a tsunami alert for Homer, Alaska. The city of Homer issued an evacuation order for low-lying areas shortly after an earthquake hit.

Michael Armstrong Homer News